NEW JERSEY – A New York man Wednesday admitted his role in a scheme to alter and deposit hundreds of checks stolen from mailboxes across New Jersey, according to U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger.
Nigel Lynch, 21, of Yonkers pleaded guilty by videoconference before U.S. District Judge Katharine S. Hayden to one count of bank fraud conspiracy and one count of conspiracy to receive and possess stolen mail, Sellinger said.
According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court, from February to November 2020, Lynch and two conspirators stole over 290 checks from New Jersey mailboxes in Morris, Essex, Somerset, and Passaic counties. They then altered the stolen checks and deposited them into bank accounts controlled by Lynch and his conspirators. After the stolen checks were deposited, Lynch and his conspirators withdrew cash from the accounts totaling over $550,000.
The bank fraud charge conspiracy charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine; and the conspiracy to receive and possess stole mail carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Sentencing is scheduled for November 8.
