A Kern County woman pleaded guilty in federal court on Monday to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and aggravated identify theft charges.
Court documents state that Karina Arceo, 34, of Wasco, ran a credit card fraud scheme from February 2016 through August 2022 with her partner, Miguel Leyva.
The big picture: Arceo stole information from over 125 victims, including files at health care providers in Kern County where she worked.
- Arceo and Leyva used the stolen information to open thousands of fraudulent credit cards in the victims’ identities.
- They made hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraudulent purchases on the credit cards, including home appliances, automobile accessories, designer clothing, concert tickets, sporting events and travel.
- They often resold items that they had fraudulently purchased to reap a cash windfall since they never actually paid for the items.
- They also used checks that had been stolen from companies in Kern County to access bank accounts and make fraudulent payments toward the credit cards to keep the scheme going.
- The total loss they caused from the scheme was over $825,000.
What we’re watching: Arceo is scheduled to be sentenced on Nov. 6 and faces a maximum of 30 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy charge.
- She also faces a mandatory two years in prison for the identity theft charge.
- Leyva previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five years and five months in prison.
