After Victimizing 17 CUs, Car Loan Fraud Leader Faces Sentencing

A January sentencing hearing is scheduled for the leader of a $2.4 million car loan fraud scheme that victimized 17 credit unions across six states, according to Acting United States Attorney Richard B. Myrus of Rhode Island.

Rolando E. Estrella, 32, a former owner of a used car dealership in Lawrence, Mass., admitted in a Providence, R.I., federal court last week that he recruited and directed others to open accounts at credit unions and banks, file fraudulent used car loan applications with credit unions, deposit fraudulently obtained used car loan checks and withdraw those stolen loan funds.

Court documents showed the car loan funds stolen from the credit unions were deposited in accounts of major financial institutions such as Bank of America and TD Bank by Estrella and others involved in the scheme.

From June 1, 2017 to Sept. 30, 2019, Estrella, and other individuals working at his direction, opened credit union and bank accounts using the personal identifying information, including Social Security numbers and birth dates, of other persons, which was bought from websites on the dark web. They used the PII information to create fake IDs to join credit unions and open bank accounts.

Estrella and his co-conspirators falsified automobile titles and used other bogus documents to apply for preowned car and truck loans. The criminals also created shell businesses of used car dealers to falsely represent themselves as the sellers of the vehicles and to fabricate phony bills of sale, according to court documents.

The stolen loan funds were deposited into bank accounts opened by members of the conspiracy who quickly withdrew the money.

Estrella pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, seven counts of bank fraud and the fraudulent use of a Social Security number.

Four others charged in this case have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. The remaining four defendants are awaiting trial, prosecutors said.

According to court documents, the victimized credit unions included: Bethpage FCU in Bethpage, N.Y.; Alliant CU in Chicago; PenFed in McLean, Va.; Digital FCU in Marlborough, Mass., Direct FCU in Needham, Mass; Metro FCU in Chelsea, Mass., American Eagle Financial CU in East Harford, Conn.; Sikorsky CU in Stratford, Conn.; Greenwood CU in Warwick, R.I., Jeanne D’Arc CU in Lowell Mass.; Workers CU in Fitchburg, Mass.; Webster First CU in Worcester, Mass.; Merrimack Valley CU in North Andover, Mass.; Sharon CU in Sharon, Mass.; Liberty Bay CU in Braintree, Mass.; RTN CU in Waltham, Mass., and Triangle CU in Nashua, N.H.

Prosecutors did not say why Estrella targeted credit unions.