Texas Man Sentenced in Federal Court in Louisiana for Conspiracy to Commit Mail Fraud Involving Stolen iPhones

Louisiana – Jimmie James (“James”), 33, a Houston resident, was sentenced on May 25, 2022 for conspiracy to commit mail fraud in violation of 18 U.S.C. 371. The Honorable Ivan Lemelle sentenced James to thirty months in prison (2 years and six months), three years of supervised release, a $100 mandatory special assessment fee, and restitution of $178,409.00.

According to court documents, James conspired with United Parcel Service (UPS) employee Tyree Johnson (“Johnson”) to steal shipments of Apple iPhones from the UPS Customer Service Center where Johnson worked. Johnson would use a shipping label provided by James to over-label boxes of iPhones destined for AT&T Mobility stores. The boxes of iPhones would be redirected to James’ home or an unidentified co-conspirator in Chalmette as a result of these shipping labels. James paid Johnson at least $3,500 through the Zelle payment app as a reward for over-labeling the packages.

U.S. Attorney Evans praised the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s work in investigating this case. The prosecution is led by Assistant United States Attorney Spiro G. Latsis.