A man who collected the personal information of his fellow jail detainees as part of a scheme to fraudulently obtain state benefits and stimulus checks was sentenced Monday to two years and seven months in federal prison.
Prosecutors say that while in custody at the Vista Detention Center, Demetrius Montre McFarland, 31, collected other detainees’ information, then provided that information to his co-defendant and then-wife, Alexandra Crystal Jackson.
Jackson used that information, along with the personal information of homeless and low-income people, to fraudulently net at least 40 EDD debit cards in other people’s names, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The cards were used to purchase jewelry and a Mercedes-Benz G-Glass 550 SUV, among other luxury items.
Jackson also applied for stimulus checks with the personal information she obtained, and the payments were moved to bank accounts she controlled, prosecutors said.
Both McFarland and Jackson pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges. Jackson was sentenced in December, also to 31 months in prison.
