Greece Woman Going to Prison for her Role in Fraud Scheme

ROCHESTER, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney Trini E. Ross announced today that Nickola Ferra, 43, of Greece, NY, who was convicted of wire fraud, was sentenced to serve 27 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa. In addition, Ferra was ordered to pay restitution totaling $16,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle P. Rossi, who handled the case, stated that Ferra engaged in an extensive pattern of conduct involving document fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud, retail theft, and identity theft. One part of the scheme involved Ferra and others obtaining merchandise by theft or fraud from local retailers, which was then returned in exchange for gift cards and store credit or sold to third parties. In furtherance of the scheme, Ferra presented forged and/or stolen passports and other stolen identification and credit information to merchants. Fraudulent purchases also included car and hotel rentals. The stolen identity information was also used in attempts to open credit cards and obtain loans in other individuals’ names. At least 10 identity theft victims and thousands of dollars in losses have been identified.   

The sentencing is the result of an investigation by the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Brian Wood, and Homeland Security Investigations, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Erin Keegan.