Former New York Federal Reserve Bank Employee and His Brother Sentenced to Prison in Manhattan Federal Court for Fraudulent Loan Schemes

February 12, 2010 - PREET BHARARA, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that CURTIS L. WILTSHIRE, a former employee of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York ("FRBNY") and his brother, KENNETH WILTSHIRE, were sentenced today to 40 months and 57 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in schemes to obtain hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraudulent loans. The sentences were imposed today by United States District Judge P. KEVIN CASTEL in Manhattan federal court. CURTIS WILTSHIRE previously pleaded guilty to bank fraud and aggravated identity theft. KENNETH WILTSHIRE previously pleaded guilty to mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. The sentences imposed today include a mandatory minimum two-year sentence imposed on aggravated identity theft charges. According to the Indictment of CURTIS WILTSHIRE, the Superseding Information filed with respect to KENNETH WILTSHIRE, other documents filed in this case, and statements made in Manhattan federal court:

CURTIS WILTSHIRE previously worked as an information and technical analyst at the FRB-NY in lower Manhattan. In that capacity, he had access to the personal identification information of many FRB-NY employees, including names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, and photographs.

In 2006, CURTIS WILTSHIRE stole identification information from FRB-NY and provided that information to his brother, KENNETH WILTSHIRE. Both brothers then used that identification information, and additional identification information KENNETH WILTSHIRE had stolen elsewhere, to apply for, and obtain, educational loans in the names of the stolen identities. Over the course of the scheme, CURTIS and KENNETH WILTSHIRE collectively sought student loans in an amount over $450,000.

KENNETH WILTSHIRE also engaged in a scheme, using the stolen identification information and photographs, to apply for boat and recreational vehicle loans. In the course of this scheme, KENNETH WILTSHIRE sought loans in an amount over $525,000.

Among the actions taken in order to execute the fraudulent student, boat, and recreational vehicle loans schemes, were the following: the creation of fake college and university transcripts and related documents; the manufacture of fake identification documents, such as driver's licenses, some of which contained photographs of employees of the FRB-NY; the creation of fake utility bills, tax returns, and W-2 documents; the opening of bank and brokerage accounts into which the fraudulently obtained loan proceeds could be deposited; and the use of prepaid cellular telephones, so that lenders could contact CURTIS and KENNETH WILTSHIRE about the fraudulent loan applications in a way that would not be easily associated with the defendants.

In addition to the prison term, CURTIS WILTSHIRE, 35, of Staten Island, was sentenced to three years of supervised release and was ordered to forfeit $200,000. Restitution for CURTIS WITSHIRE will be decided at a later date. In addition to the prison term, KENNETH WILTSHIRE, 41, of Staten Island, was sentenced to three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay over $1 million in restitution and to forfeit $525,160. In imposing sentence on CURTIS WILTSHIRE, Judge CASTEL stated that such schemes "undermine faith in good, worthy programs," and called his theft of identities from the FRB-NY "a special breach of trust."

In imposing sentence on KENNETH WILTSHIRE, Judge CASTEL stated that schemes like these are a "tear in the public fabric" that "undermine support for public programs that may be worthwhile." Mr. BHARARA praised the investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Postal Inspection Service in this case. He also thanked the Federal Reserve Bank of New York for its assistance in the investigation.

This case is being handled by the Complex Frauds Unit of the United States Attorney's Office. Assistant United States Attorneys DANIEL W. LEVY and ZACHARY FEINGOLD are in charge of these prosecutions.