A new butt, a Benz and a lawn mower: How court records say fraud suspects spent the money
A Durham attorney and two others have been charged with bank fraud in an alleged scheme to pay for plastic surgery, a Mercedes Benz and John Deere equipment, according to court documents.
Tiffany Dawn Russell, 41, appeared in federal court Tuesday after she was charged with conspiracy to commit bank fraud, multiple counts of bank fraud and other charges, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of North Carolina.
Rahne Cooper, 31 and Darius Hinton, 31, are also charged. According to the indictment, there are other unnamed co-conspirators.
Russell’s attorney, Elliot S. Abrams, wrote in an email that his client voluntarily surrendered Tuesday and was released without bond.
“She looks forward to reviewing the allegations and defending herself against these charges,” he wrote.
Cooper, Hinton and Russell applied in 2016 for loans and credit cards using aliases and other false information, according to court documents.
“By doing so, the indictment alleges they created new credit profiles or synthetic identities for themselves to open financial accounts and make purchases from retailers without any intention of paying for the items and services obtained,” the press release states.
Russell conspired to obtain credit cards from Synchrony Bank to make payments to Advanced Plastic Surgery Solutions, “aka Dr. Curves,” according to court documents.
Nearly $13,000 was paid to the practice toward Russell’s butt augmentation surgery, according to court documents. Russell also used false information when seeking nearly $29,000 to buy a BMW, the documents said.
Cooper used the scheme to apply for a loan to buy a 2009 Mercedes Benz from a dealership in Garner, according to court documents.
Hinton used his false identity to purchase about $15,000 in John Deere lawn equipment and $13,000 in computer equipment, according to court documents.
If convicted, the trio faces maximum penalties for the conspiracy and each bank fraud count of 30 years in prison, a $1 million fine, restitution and forfeiture.
This story was originally published November 24, 2020 at 6:27 PM.
