Minnesota Man Sentenced to Prison for SSN Misuse and Aggravated Identity Theft

 MINNEAPOLIS—Last week in federal court in Duluth, a 57-year-old Deer Creek man was sentenced for using the identity of another person when applying for a passport. On July 26, 2012, United States District Court Judge Richard H. Kyle sentenced Frank Chester Brown to 30 months in federal prison on one count of making false statements in a U.S. passport application, one count of false representation of a Social Security number, and one count of aggravated identity theft. Brown was indicted on November 8, 2011, and pleaded guilty on March 2, 2012.

In his plea agreement, Brown admitted that on June 29, 2004, Brown made the false statement in the passport application by providing the name and Social Security number along with the date and place of birth of someone else. Brown admitted that since 1993 he had been using the identity of someone he knew without their knowledge. It was that stolen identity Brown used on the passport application. In support of his application, Brown presented an expired passport with the same false name. Authorities became suspicious of his application after the victim of his crime applied for a passport on May 3, 2010.

 In addition, Brown admitted that in 1994 he fraudulently obtained a Social Security card number using the stolen identity but a different birth date. In support of his application for the card, Brown submitted fraudulent documents, including an altered version of the victim’s birth certificate. Based on the application, the Social Security Administration (“SSA”) issued the card. Brown also used the card in a credit application for a motorcycle financing loan from a bank. The aggravated identity theft count applies to Brown’s use of the fraudulent Social Security number.

Brown, who was considered armed and dangerous, fled authorities and was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service (“USMS”) on October 5, 2011, in Alabama. He remains in custody.

This case was the result of an investigation by the U.S. State Department Diplomatic Security Service, the SSA-Office of Inspector General, the USMS, the Henning Police Department, the Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Office, and the Richland County, North Dakota, Sheriff’s Office. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lola Velazquez-Aguilu.