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A 23-year-old woman is accused of four federal crimes stemming in part from a $30,000 student loan check.
A grand jury in U.S. District Court in Fort Wayne indicted Jennifer K. Howard of Fort Wayne on charges of access device fraud, wire fraud, mail fraud and identity theft.
According to court documents, Howard completed an online application for a $30,000 student loan from American Education Services in July 2007.
The loan application showed Howard as the borrower and a person identified in court documents only as “S.M.” as the co-signer, but “S.M.” had not given authorization.
In August 2007, the loan was approved and a $30,000 check was mailed to Howard and “S.M.” from the Education Resources Institute in Massachusetts, according to court documents.
Howard is also accused of the unauthorized use of two credit cards to obtain more than $1,000 in services.
As part of the indictment, the federal government is seeking the forfeiture of a 2005 Jeep Liberty Sport, a vehicle that can be traced to Howard’s alleged offenses, according to court documents.
Issued on Oct. 22, the indictments remained sealed until Monday when Howard surrendered to police, according to court documents.
The case was the result of an investigation by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Allen County Sheriff’s Department as part of the Identity Theft Task Force, according to a statement from the U.S. attorney’s office.
rgreen@jg.net
