Federal prosecutors say a father and son from Pittsford, New York, stand accused in a wide-ranging synthetic identity fraud that used stolen Social Security numbers to open hundreds of credit and debit accounts, generating more than $2.25 million in losses to financial institutions and harming the credit of real victims, including children.
A federal grand jury returned a 19-count indictment charging Talib Hussain, 75, and Mirza Khan, 48, both of Pittsford, NY, with conspiracy to commit bank, wire fraud, access device fraud, and aggravated identity theft. The formal charges carry a potential maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1,000,000 fine. The counts reflect allegations of a long-running, coordinated effort rather than a single isolated incident.
Court filings say the scheme ran from 2012 through July 23, 2024, and involved creating synthetic identities built from valid Social Security numbers belonging to real people, often children who are less likely to monitor credit activity. Prosecutors describe synthetic identity fraud as a deliberate tactic that exploits gaps in how credit is opened and tracked for minors. The indictment frames the alleged conduct as systematic and repeated across many financial platforms.
According to the indictment, the defendants and co-conspirators submitted roughly 1,072 online applications to financial institutions for credit and debit cards using those manufactured identities. Those applications allegedly produced real cards tied to the synthetic files, which the group then obtained and used. The scale of applications is a central item in the prosecutor’s portrait of an organized fraud ring.
The indictment alleges the defendants rented apartments in the Western District of New York to serve as mailing addresses for the synthetic accounts, a tactic meant to receive cards and avoid direct ties to the real-identity owners. Once they collected cards, investigators say Hussain, Khan and others used them for purchases at retail chains including Apple, BJs, and Sam’s Club, and also for transactions at business locations tied to the defendants, such as Lucky Beverage, Chili Express Mart, and Easy Food Market.
Beyond retail spending, the complaint alleges the group used the synthetic accounts to pay property taxes on three Rochester properties and employed fraudulent checks to make temporary payments that increased available credit on the synthetic cards. Those short-term payments were followed by defaults, leaving the full balances unpaid and shifting losses onto banks and the real identity victims. The alleged activity, prosecutors say, caused measurable harm to victims’ credit and created significant losses for lenders.
Financial institutions named as victims include American Express, Bank of America, Barclays Bank Delaware, Capital One, JPMorgan Chase Bank, Citibank, Comenity Bank, Discover Bank, First National Bank of Omaha, Synchrony Bank, and US Bank. Investigators have calculated the financial hit at approximately $2,257,697. That figure reflects the aggregate charge-offs and direct losses tied to the accounts that the indictment identifies.
“Stealing the identity of any person is wrong, and it’s a crime, but stealing the identity of a child is especially egregious,” stated U.S. Attorney DiGiacomo. “Let this case serve as a warning that those who commit identity theft will be prosecuted. But let it also serve as a warning to families of the importance of maintaining credit monitoring for your children.”
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The case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Meghan K. McGuire, and the indictment followed a multi-agency investigation. The probe involved the Federal Bureau of Investigation under Special Agent-in-Charge Allen D. Davis, II; the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation New York under Special Agent-in-Charge Harry T. Chavis, Jr.; the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Boston Division under Acting Inspector-in-Charge Justin Page; and the Social Security Administration Office of Inspector General under Special Agent-in-Charge Amy Connelly, Boston New York Field Division. The coordinated inquiry combined financial forensics, mail records, and identity verification checks.
The indictment and related filings describe alleged patterns of behavior, account activity, and transactional routes that prosecutors say tie the defendants to the synthetic identities and the resulting losses. If convicted, the defendants would face penalties tied to each count in the indictment, reflecting both the fraud allegations and the aggravated identity theft counts. The government’s presentation emphasizes the vulnerability of unused or infrequently monitored Social Security numbers.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation, and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
