Two From Georgia Plead Guilty in Federal Court in Louisiana in Connection with Using Counterfeit Passports to Steal Money

New Orleans, Louisiana – On September 15, 2022, U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that Danielle Dorsett, age 54, and her brother, Byron J. Laforest, age 50, both residents of Atlanta, Georgia, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Carl J. Barbier to conspiracy to use false or counterfeit passports. Judge Barbier scheduled their sentencing for January 5, 2023.

According to court filings, Dorsett and Laforest obtained counterfeit passport cards with the names and other details of victims whose personal identifying information they stole beginning in November 2021. While these cards contained personal information on the victims, they also included a portrait of Dorsett or Laforest. Dorsett and Laforest then used these cards to withdraw money from the bank accounts of their victims. Dorsett and Laforest utilized the personal information of at least six people during the conspiracy to withdraw (or attempt to take) money from their bank accounts. They took money from banks in Florida, Louisiana, and Texas.

The scheme came to an end in early 2022. Dorsett was arrested by Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office deputies on January 28, 2022, while attempting to get a victim’s bank statement at an IberiaBank location in Harvey, Louisiana. Dorsett was released on bail following her arrest. Federal investigators detained her and Laforest at a hotel in New Orleans East about two weeks later, on February 14, 2022. Agents discovered six more bogus passport cards in the hotel room, which had Laforest’s photograph but included the victims’ personal identifying information instead.

According to Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a), Dorsett and Laforest face up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, up to three years of supervised release following imprisonment, and a mandatory $100 special assessment charge (2).

The work of the Diplomatic Security Service’s New Orleans Field Office in investigating this situation was lauded by U.S. Attorney Evans. U.S. Attorney Evans expressed gratitude to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office and the District Attorney’s Office for the 24th Judicial District for their help in this case. The prosecution is led by Assistant United States Attorney Matthew R. Payne.