FRESNO, Calif. — Ruben Chavez III, 36, of Merced, was arrested today, after a federal grand jury indicted him on Thursday for credit card fraud and related identity theft, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.
According to court documents, from April 2021 through March 2022, Chavez obtained victims’ credit cards and used them to make over $60,000 in fraudulent purchases at retail stores. He also changed the victims’ mailing addresses to his own address and created fake identification cards in their names to help further his fraud.
This case is the product of an investigation by U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Barton is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Chavez faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and fine of up to $250,000 for the credit card fraud, and a mandatory two-year consecutive sentence for the identity theft. Any sentence, however, would be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables. The charges are only allegations; the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.