Dozens of people were arrested. Suspicion of involvement Hundreds of thousands of dollars were stolen from victims in a massive bank fraud case.
Law enforcement officials said the victims had done nothing to be targeted in the scheme, and that the group obtained their personal information from online sources on the dark web.
“Criminals only have time to figure out how to get their hands on that data,” Mont Belvieu Police Chief Jimmy Ellison said.
Police identified 35 victims in the Houston area alone and said the group stole between $360,000 and $600,000.
The group that led the scheme obtained the funds and then asked friends and family to launder them through their accounts.
“Once they have the information, the criminals start wire transferring money from the victim’s bank account, but to be successful they have to move the money into a clean account, so they start recruiting other people,” Ellison said.
Some of the criminal associates were recruited through social media.
Police have dubbed the investigation “Operation Cashback.”
Gregory Edwards III, 23, Doc Frank, 25, Jason Gipson, 20, and LaJuel McGilvray, 21, were identified as ringleaders in the scheme and charged with engaging in organized crime and money laundering.
Some of his alleged criminal associates lived as far away as Georgia and Illinois.
Online security experts told KTRK-TV that people can protect themselves from these scams by not reusing passwords, adding two-factor authentication to their bank accounts and using biometric security options.
Mont Belvieu police said they are still investigating the incident and are working to identify any other accomplices.
This is News Video Report Reporting from KTRK on the arrest.
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