Philadelphia Resident Sentenced in Fraud Scheme

PHILADELPHIA—Evigeny Tarasenko, 28, of Philadelphia, was sentenced today to 37 months in prison for a fraud scheme in which he and his wife, Ellena Ossiptchouk, leased vehicles and then sold them on eBay and other Internet sites, announced United States Attorney Zane David Memeger. Ossiptchouk was sentenced to 33 months in prison on July 7, 2010. The couple was charged in November 2009 with conspiracy to transport checks and securities taken by fraud in interstate commerce, transporting a stolen vehicle, using another person’s identity to defraud, and wire fraud. Each pleaded guilty in April 2010. The defendants leased high-end vehicles using false identities. The vehicles were then sold through the Internet, inducing innocent buyers to travel from as far away as Nebraska to pay for the vehicles and take them home. The defendants represented that they were the outright owners of the vehicles and that they had the titles to the vehicles. The buyers were told that once their checks cleared the bank, the defendants would send the titles to them. The titles were never sent because the defendants were not the rightful owners of the vehicles. The defendants defrauded their victims of at least $181,000.

In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Court Judge Harvey Bartle, III, Tarasenko to pay restitution in the amount of $105,022.07.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel A. Velez.