Texan admits identity theft to defraud Tulsa credit unions
BY DAVID HARPER World Staff Writer
Friday, November 09, 2012
A Texas man pleaded guilty in Tulsa federal court Friday to using another person's Social Security number to finance the purchase of a Winnebago motorhome.
Don Eugene Osby Jr., 38, is charged in an 18-count indictment that was unsealed Sept. 27.
Osby is alleged to have deceived the Tulsa Federal Credit Union and the Tulsa Teachers Credit Union from Nov. 18, 2010, until June 24, 2011, by providing a false Social Security number to get approval for vehicle loans.
He is believed to have obtained at least six vehicles through illegal means, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Gallant told the court.
The grand jury alleged in the indictment, which was issued under seal July 11, that Osby illegally financed not only the 2007 Winnebago Vista but also a 2004 Coachman motorhome, a 2003 Hummer H2, a 2011 Chevrolet Traverse, a 2011 Chevrolet Suburban and a 2011 Chevrolet Equinox.
Although Osby pleaded guilty only to the charge pertaining to the Winnebago, U.S. District Judge Claire Eagan will be able to consider all relevant conduct when she sentences Osby, who is free on bond, on Feb. 12.
Gallant said Osby was apparently obtaining the vehicles for a car rental business he was operating at the time.
Prosecutors had asked in the indictment that Osby forfeit $230,514 in proceeds they claimed he received as a result of criminal activity. However, that count was not addressed in Friday's plea.
Gallant estimated that Osby will face 21 to 27 months in prison under federal sentencing guidelines.
