Florida Man Sentenced for Aggravated Identity Theft and Fraud Committed Against at Least 450 Victims
Friday, February 27, 2026 - A Florida man was sentenced today to 55 months in prison and three years of supervised release for possessing approximately 450 fraudulent, stolen or counterfeit access devices, which included others’ credit card numbers, social security numbers, and means to gain access to bank accounts.
Mckenzie Levar Monestine, 33, of Miami, pleaded guilty in December 2025 to one count of possessing 15 or more unauthorized access devices and one count of aggravated identity theft. Monestine pleaded guilty to these charges based on conduct stemming from a 2020 FBI investigation.
According to court documents, on or about June 22, 2020, law enforcement agents executed a search warrant at Monestine’s home. That search uncovered a trove of fraud evidence inside Monestine’s padlocked room, including mechanisms to access the banking information of other people, such as personally identifying information (PII), social security numbers, account passwords, driver’s license numbers, phone numbers, bank account numbers, credit card numbers, debit card numbers, and dates of birth belonging to other persons. Because much of the fraudulent activity was committed online and using social media and email, the evidence of how Monestine committed the fraud was found on numerous electronic devices, such as cellphones and a Macbook laptop. Monestine kept information consisting of the PII in various forms and locations on his devices including in a spreadsheet containing approximately 450 access devices and in notes maintained on his MacBook Pro. Monestine exchanged numerous text messages on his phone that contained PII as well, including logins for banking information, pin numbers for credit and debit cards, and data used to access other people’s bank accounts.
In addition, the search uncovered physical evidence of fraud, including over $11,000 in U.S. currency; a large number of credit, debit, and gift cards, in the names of other people; fake identification cards; Western Union money orders; a credit card re-encoder that the information encoded in a credit card’s chip or magnetic strip and mail in other people’s names.
The estimated loss to victims in this case is between $250,000 and $550,000.
Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida; and Special Agent in Charge Brett D. Skiles of FBI Miami Field Office made the announcement.
The FBI Miami Field office investigated the case.
Trial Attorneys Jinah Chang and Jennifer E. Burns of the Criminal Division’s Violent Crime and Racketeering Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Lindsey Maultasch for the Southern District of Florida prosecuted the case.
This case is part of the Criminal Division’s Violent Crime Initiative to prosecute violent crimes in Miami. The Criminal Division and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida have partnered, along with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, to confront violent crimes committed by gang members and associates through the enforcement of federal laws and use of federal resources to prosecute offenders and prevent violence.
U.S. Department of Justice
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Source: Justice.gov
