Federal officials say more than a dozen people are accused of running a bank-account takeover scheme worth $373 million. The scheme targeted thousands of residents across the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Officials said the suspects include possible insiders at major banks.
The DOJ said the suspected ringleader is Muhamed Dieye, 35, of Dallas. He and 13 others have been indicted on wire fraud, bank fraud and identity theft charges. The 22-count indictment was unsealed Thursday, after the arrest of Terrence Dudley, whom officials said is believed to be a key co-conspirator. The U.S. Attorney's Office said it had an arrest warrant for Dieye hours before he allegedly tried to leave the country on a one-way flight to Malaysia. Officials said he was arrested at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York shortly after scanning his boarding pass. The DOJ said he tried to destroy one of his cell phones and had to be subdued by federal agents.
Investigators said Dieye had a spreadsheet with personal and business information on nearly 3,000 victims. According to officials, he and others allegedly accessed or withdrew funds from victims' accounts at several banks. Detectives said Dieye once tried to wire $2 million from a victim's account to Emirates Islamic Bank. The suspects also allegedly used counterfeit identification documents.