TRENTON
– Attorney General Jeffrey S. Chiesa
announced that a Livingston man was indicted
today on charges he obtained credit cards
and lines of credit with a stolen identity
and used them to make purchases of goods and
services totaling approximately $118,723.
Diorgiton
Silva, 29, a Brazilian national who formerly
lived in Livingston, was indicted on charges
of theft by deception (2nd degree), identity
theft (2nd degree) and fraudulent use of
a credit card (3rd degree). The charges
stem from a joint investigation by the Division
of Criminal Justice, U.S. Secret Service
Newark Field Office, under the supervision
of Special Agent in Charge Jacob Christine,
and New York Field Office of the U.S. Department
of State's Bureau of Diplomatic Security.
It
is alleged that between April 2005 and November
2009, Silva used the identity of a man who
lives in Puerto Rico to obtain credit cards
and lines of credit with retailers and financial
institutions. He purchased approximately
$118,723 in goods and services with the
fraudulent credit. The investigation revealed
that Silva used the man’s birth certificate
and other identifying information to get
a U.S. passport and a New Jersey identification
card. With those documents, he secured the
lines of credit, which he used to buy, among
other things, an Infiniti car, a Honda motorcycle,
furniture, clothing, and high-end televisions
and stereo equipment. After making the purchases,
he failed to make any payments to the retailers
and financial institutions.
Deputy
Attorney General Sarah Lichter presented
the case to the state grand jury for the
New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice
Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau.
Silva
was arrested on a warrant in January 2011
as a result of this investigation. Silva,
who is not a U.S. citizen, is the subject
of a detainer filed against him by federal
immigration authorities.
Second-degree
crimes carry a sentence of five to 10 years
in state prison and a fine of up to $150,000,
while third-degree crimes carry a sentence
of three to five years in state prison and
a fine of up to $15,000. The indictment
is merely an accusation and the defendant
is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The
indictment was handed up to Superior Court
Judge Mary C. Jacobson in Mercer County,
who assigned it to Union County, where Silva
will be ordered to appear at a later date
to answer the charges.
