Woman spent years using stolen identity of optometry patient 300 miles away, jury finds
A woman in New Jersey went to the optometrist in 2017 for what federal prosecutors called a “run-of-the-mill visit” in which she was asked to provide a copy of her driver’s license and fill out a form with her Social Security number and birthday.
That information soon fell into the wrong hands, the government said.
As a result, someone more than 300 miles away spent years living off her stolen identity — including using her name and Social Security number to rent an apartment, buy furniture on credit and sign up for cable television, according to federal court documents. Prosecutors identified the suspect as 38-year-old Shaneca Mosley, and a federal jury found her guilty on all counts after a four-day trial in the Eastern District of Virginia last week.
Mosley faces up to 30 years in prison when she is sentenced on July 15.
She could not be reached for comment, and a defense attorney appointed to represent her declined to comment in a statement to McClatchy News on Feb. 15.
According to a summary of the evidence filed before trial, the case dates to mid 2017, when a New Jersey woman identified in court filings as C.J. went to the optometrist. During the visit, C.J. reportedly provided the office with her name, date of birth and Social Security number as well as a copy of her driver’s license.
It wasn’t immediately clear how that data was leaked, but Mosley was provided with a copy of the form she filled out and her driver’s license in a text message on Feb. 14, 2018, prosecutors said.
Four months later, the government said, she set to work using the stolen information.
Mosley applied for a new apartment in Virginia Beach using C.J.’s Social Security number and a forged New Jersey driver’s license, court documents state. But prosecutors said she provided her own phone number and the names of her real children in the application.
She later opened a line of credit at Grand Furniture store and bought more than $3,000 worth of merchandise using a doctored pay stub in C.J.’s name and the same fake New Jersey license, prosecutors said. She reportedly got cable services in C.J.’s name around the same time.
In January 2020, Mosley again used C.J.’s name and personal information to buy a Mercedes-Benz sport utility vehicle as well as vehicle insurance and registration, court documents state.
The Mercedes had to go into the shop for repairs shortly after she bought it, and the dealership reportedly gave Mosley a loaner car in the meantime. An officer with the Norfolk Police Department subsequently pulled the car over while Mosley was sitting in the passenger seat, and prosecutors said she gave them C.J.’s name, birthday, home address and Social Security number in response.
According to the government, Mosley was then “free to leave.”
“Following that night, between April and May 2020, the defendant continued to enjoy the use of her fraudulently purchased Mercedes-Benz, driving it through the Elizabeth River Tunnels some 13 or more times and racking up unpaid toll charges,” prosecutors said in court documents.
The Mercedes was ultimately repossessed in June 2020 after Mosley failed to make the required car payments, the government said.
Court filings state her rampant identity theft caused C.J. serious credit problems and a loss of more than $27,000.
It wasn’t immediately clear how federal investigators traced the fraud to Mosley, but a grand jury indicted her in August 2021 on seven counts of false representation of a Social Security number, making false statements on a loan application and aggravated identity theft.
She was arraigned on Aug. 26 and released on bond, court documents show.
Mosley’s trial was delayed after she tested positive for COVID-19 and encountered issues with her public defender, the government said. Jury selection was eventually completed and opening statements were heard Feb. 8.
On Feb. 11, prosecutors said, Mosley was convicted on three counts of false representation of a Social Security number, one count of false statement on a loan application and three counts of aggravated identity theft.
Prosecutors said it’s not her first conviction related to Social Security fraud after she pleaded guilty in 2009 to a similar scheme. The judge sentenced Mosley in that case to two months in prison with three years of supervised release.
This story was originally published February 15, 2022 at 6:39 PM with the headline "Woman spent years using stolen identity of optometry patient 300 miles away, jury finds."
