Chester Twp. Resident Among Identity Theft Ring's Victims

A Chester Township resident was among 70 victims of a busted identity theft ring that netted 11 arrests.

The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office announced Friday the culmination of a task force's efforts to probe numerous complaints of identity theft from 30 jurisdictions within the past two years. Chester Township Detective Brian Gill worked on the task force after investigating a township victim's report of credit card fraud, Lt. Edward Noonan said.

Credit cards were opened in the victims' names, and charges were made on their behalf by "authorized buyers," Bergen Prosecutor John Molinelli said.

The task force investigation found that most of the victims had recently refinanced or applied through mortgages through NJ Lenders Corporation, based in Little Falls. NJ Lenders archived its customers' files at C. Marino Records, a warehouse in Paterson.

The prosecutor's office claims that Kyle Davis of Paterson, an employee of C. Marino Records, sold victims' information to Shontera Jennings, also of Paterson. Jennings used the information to apply for credit cards, Molinelli said.

Once opened, Jennings added authorized buyers onto the accounts, who were sent to retailers to make purchases, Molinelli said. The scheme netted more than $150,000 in goods, the prosecutor said.

The following people were charged with trafficking in personal identifying information; theft by deception; and conspiracy to commit theft by deception. Bail was set at $300,000 each, no 10 percent option:

• Kyle Davis, 48, Paterson;
• Lakia Thomas, 34, Paterson;
• Angel Leary, 35, Paterson;
• Mark Gordon, 43, Paterson;
• Jannelle F. Fields, 33, Waterboro, SC;
• Randolph Grant, 36, Paterson;
• Shontera Jennings, 32, Paterson;
• Judith Broadnax, 47, Paterson;
• Oliver J. Hall, 40, Paterson;
• June W. Mattiex, 55, Wayne;
• Danisha L. Greene, 35, Paterson.