A Lynn man pleaded guilty yesterday in connection with a scheme to impersonate bank customers and fraudulently withdraw money from their bank accounts.

Antonio Niati, 28, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and one count of aiding and abetting aggravated identity theft. Sentencing is set for Aug. 14. Niati was indicted and arrested in September 2018.

Niati recruited a bank teller working at a Santander Bank branch in Dorchester in 2017 to assist in conducting fraudulent transactions in victim bank accounts.

Another co-conspirator conducted transactions in two Santander Bank customers’ accounts using fraudulent driver’s licenses on three occasions in April 2017, all with the assistance of Niati and the recruited teller. Niati and his co-conspirators fraudulently withdrew over $640,000 from the customers’ accounts.

The charge of conspiracy to commit bank fraud provides for a sentence of no greater than 30 years in prison, five years of supervised release and a fine of up to $1 million.

The charge of aggravated identity theft provides for a mandatory sentence of two years, to be served consecutively to any other imposed sentence, one year of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000.

Lynn Man Pleads Guilty to $640K Bank Fraud and ID Theft

by Banker & Tradesman time to read: 1 min
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