PITTSBURGH – An individual has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on charges of wire fraud, interstate transportation of a stolen motor vehicle and aggravated identity theft, United States Attorney Cindy K. Chung announced today.
The seven-count Indictment, returned on March 17, named Serge Ahmed Zeba, age 31, who has resided at multiple addresses in several states, as the sole defendant.
According to the Indictment, from November 2020 to January 2022, Zeba schemed with others known and unknown to use victim’s stolen PII to complete online applications to obtain lines of credit in victims’ names from automobile financing companies, without those victims’ permission or knowledge. Zeba then traveled to automobile dealerships throughout the country, including dealerships located in the Western District of Pennsylvania, and presented to employees fraudulent identification in the names of victims whose PII had been stolen, as well as fraudulent money orders, purportedly to cover the down payments for the vehicles. The grand jury further alleges that from August 24, 2021 to November 29, 2021, Zeba transported a stolen motor vehicle, namely, a 2021 Lexus RX350, in interstate commerce. The grand jury further alleges that on August 19, 2021 through August 24, 2021 and on August 29, 2021 through September 2, 2021, in relation to the felony wire fraud, used a means of identification of another person.
The law provides for a maximum total sentence of not more than 20 years in prison, a fine of $1,750,000 or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Assistant United States Attorney Karen Gal-Or is prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Department of State (Buffalo Field Office) and the Pennsylvania State Police conducted the investigation leading to the Indictment in this case.
An indictment is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.