Man sentenced for multistate credit card scheme

BOZEMAN (AP)

A 38-year-old Oregon man who took part in a fraudulent credit card scheme that netted between $1 million and $2 million from 37 financial institutions across several states, including Montana, was sentenced Tuesday to six and a half years in prison. Kevin James Dixon, who appeared in District Court in Sacramento, Calif., had pleaded guilty to one count of interstate transportation of money obtained by fraud. He is the third defendant to be sentenced for the scheme that ran from 2007 to 2008. Bozeman police Detective Andy Knight, who helped investigate the case, said more than $63,000 was stolen from 11 banks in Bozeman and Livingston. The FBI said the scheme involved prepaid credit cards loaded with small amounts of money. The cards were Brought to banks by so-called "runners" who told tellers that the cards should have more money on them than they were showing. The runners would then tell the tellers to call a toll-free number. The person who answered was part of the scam and would instruct bank tellers to push certain buttons on the banks' credit card machines, which would clear cash advance transactions up to $9,500. The scheme spanned an area that included California, Alabama, Arizona, Illinois, Indiana, Montana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Ohio and Texas. Authorities say 28-year-old Charles Barksdale, of Oakland and Sacramento, Calif., was the ringleader. He was sentenced in August to 10 years and 10 months in prison. Another runner, 23-year-old Patience Isaacs of Kentucky, was sentenced in January to two years and three months in prison. Meanwhile, 38-year-old Donald Taylor, of Portland, Ore., is scheduled to be sentenced in Sacramento on Nov. 9.