Salem County, NJ, man goes to prison for role in bank fraud, robbing mail carriers

A former Salem County resident is headed to prison for his role in multiple schemes, including bank fraud, identity theft, and the robbery of two U.S. Post Office letter carriers in South Jersey.

This past Tuesday, 25-year-old Dezhon McCrae, formerly of Penns Grove, was sentenced to 111 months, or about nine years, following his guilty plea to the following:

• 2 counts of conspiracy to commit bank fraud
• Possession of a stolen postal key
• Possession of stolen mail
• Aggravated identity theft
• Conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery.

According to federal officials,

From May 2018 through February 2020, McCrae was part of a “card cracking” conspiracy in which a group obtained stolen checks from the mail and other sources. They then used the stolen checks to create counterfeit checks for deposit into area banks. They then posted ads online seeking people who were willing to give them access to their bank accounts to move those counterfeit checks.

That scheme defrauded banks out of over $274,000; McCrae’s role was worth about $10,000 in losses.

Six other codefendants have already been sentenced in connection with this scheme and three additional people have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.

After being charged in that case, McCrae engaged in a second nearly identical scheme from May through July 2022 to defraud another bank. This time, the victim bank suffered over $14,000 in losses.

On August 18th, 2023, while on pre-trial release, McCrae was living in Paulk County, GA, and cops there were called to his home in response to a shooting. That investigation led to the discovery of a stolen postal mailbox key and stolen mail in his home.

During that shooting investigation, cops searched McCrae's cell phone and they found evidence that he made a fake New Jersey driver’s license. That evidence also showed that McCrae mailed that false ID to his conspirators in Camden in late June 2023. On July 3rd of that year, that fake ID was used in a failed attempt to cash a stolen check at a bank in New Jersey.

Also on his phone, officials found evidence of his role in a conspiracy to rob two U.S. Postal Letter Carriers in Cumberland County -- one robbery occurred on June 13th, 2023, and the other on July 3rd. Both carriers were assaulted and one had his keys stolen.

In addition to the prison term, McCrae was sentenced to five years of supervised release and was ordered to pay nearly $25,000 in restitution.