By Allan Lengel
ticklethewire.com
A DEA program manager from Maryland has been charged in a fraudulent scheme involving DEA credit cards.
She’s charged with using the cards to withdraw from ATM machines about $115,000 for her own use.
Keenya Meshell Banks, age 41, of Upper Marlboro, Md. is charged in a criminal complaint with access device fraud, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. She made her initial appearance on Thursday in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt.
According to a government affidavit, Banks worked as a DEA Program Manager in Northern Virginia, and was responsible for the approval and issuance of government credit cards to DEA employees, authorities said in a press release. The affidavit alleges that from June 2010 through October 2014, Banks fraudulently acquired 33 DEA credit cards.
According to the press release:
Specifically, Banks allegedly submitted applications that included the names and identifying information of individuals who did not work for DEA and therefore were not eligible to receive DEA government credit cards. On at least one occasion, Banks submitted an application that matched a current DEA employee. The employee never received the card and Banks allegedly used the personal information of the employee without the employee’s knowledge or approval. The credit cards were ordered by Banks via email, and the cards were sent to Banks via Federal Express or other mail, based on her certification on the applications.
The criminal complaint alleges that Banks used the cards at Automated Teller Machines in Maryland and Northern Virginia, withdrawing approximately $115,841.74 over the course of the scheme. No payment was ever made to the credit card issuer.
