Cyber Sweep nets ID-theft suspects

Friday, Nov. 28, 2003 | 9:12 a.m.

Law enforcement authorities have charged three people in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas in connection with a new cyber-crime-fighting initiative.

The U.S. attorney's office announced the charges Wednesday as part of Operation Cyber Sweep, which is being coordinated by the Department of Justice.

Charged in Las Vegas were: Mark Allyn Kwasek, aliases Mark A. Ferari and Robert Ricketts, 38, of Henderson; Jason Dwight Zeglis, 22, of Belvidere, Ill.; and Shanna Daniels, 30, of Las Vegas.

Kwasek, arrested in Las Vegas on Nov. 21, was charged with wire fraud, use of unauthorized access devices and use of another individual's Social Security number. He allegedly used the identities of other people to obtain and sell merchandise over the Internet.

He had an initial appearance Tuesday before federal Magistrate Robert Johnson in Las Vegas and was released on a personal recognizance bond pending a preliminary hearing.

Zeglis, arrested on Nov. 21 in Normal, Ill., was charged with access device fraud. He also had his first appearance before a federal magistrate in Illinois earlier this week and was released on a personal recognizance bond pending a preliminary hearing. A warrant has been issued for the arrest of Daniels, who has been charged with identity theft and use of another individual's Social Security number.

The criminal complaint against Zeglis is sealed, but the one against Daniels is not. It accuses her of stealing the identity of a resident of Orland Park, Ill., and used that identity to make thousands of dollars of purchases.

Nationally, the Justice Department's top priorities involve terrorism, violent crime and drug enforcement.

But white collar crime also ranks among the department's top priorities, said Natalie Collins, spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office in Nevada.

"We will be continuing to prosecute these types of crimes, particularly identity theft on the Internet," Collins said.

The FBI ranks cyber-crime as the agency's third highest priority nationally behind terrorism and foreign intelligence, FBI Special Agent Todd Palmer in Las Vegas said.

"It appears to be a growing problem in Nevada," Palmer said. "Both the number of subjects and number of victims appears to be increasing."

Federal agencies referred 58,392 Internet-related fraud complaints to law enforcement authorities in the first nine months of this year compared to 48,000 for all of 2002.

In addition to fraud, software piracy and the fencing of stolen goods also is being targeted.

Operation Cyber Sweep, designed to crack down on Internet economic crime, involves 34 U.S. attorney's offices nationwide, as well as the FBI, Postal Inspection Service, Federal Trade Commission, Secret Service, Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and various state, local and foreign law enforcement agencies.

Victims of Internet crime may file an online complaint with the Internet Fraud Complaint Center, a joint project of the FBI and the National White-Collar Crime Center. The online complaint forms are available at: www.ifccfbi.gov.

More information on Operation Cyber Sweep may also be obtained by visiting the justice department's website at: www.usdoj.gov.com