newjerseynewsroom.com

A Union County man was sentenced to three years in state prison Friday for his role in a scheme to steal people's identities and engage in credit card fraud.

Andres A. Correa, 30, of Elizabeth, who is also known as Frank Perec, was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Robert J. Mega in Union Elizabeth, according to state Acting Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Riza Dagli.

The sentence was based on Correa's guilty plea to second-degree trafficking in personal identifying information of another and second-degree identity theft. The charges were contained in a Union County grand jury indictment returned on April 9.

In pleading guilty on Aug. 11, Correa admitted that between July 1 and Oct. 1, 2008, he obtained credit card numbers of more than 10 Delta gas station customers without their knowledge. Correa then used the credit card numbers to create other credit cards that were used to commit fraud.

Correa also admitted that he knowingly impersonated "Frank Perec" and, acting in that identity, committed a total of eight thefts at two Home Depot stores in Union County.

Detective Jarek Pyrzanowski, Analyst Christina Runkle, and former Deputy Attorney General John J. Higgins were assigned to the investigation. Deputy Attorney General Dennis Kwasnik prosecuted the case. The Port Authority, Roselle Park and Linden police also took part in the case.

— TOM HESTER SR., NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM