U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced Nathaniel Johnson, 42, and his wife, Lakisha Scanes, 29, both of Camden, New Jersey, are each charged in separate criminal complaints.
Officials say Johnson and Scanes followed mail carriers and stole Social Security, unemployment and tax refund checks from mailboxes. The, Johnson and Scanes recruited drug addicts and prostitutes from the streets of Camden, got fake IDs for their recruits in the names of the payees on the checks, and had their recruits cash the checks at various local businesses in and around Camden.
Police say Johnson and Scanes paid each recruit part of the money from the checks they cashed.
The operation ran from November 2009 until last month, according to investigators.
Scanes is free on bail. Johnson is set for a bail hearing Thursday.
If convicted on the theft of Government funds charge, Johnson and Scanes face a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000, or twice the amount they stole offense.
