SAN FRANCISCO — An East Bay man has been charged with stealing $800,000 from prepaid debit cards, prosecutors said.
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Earlier this month, a federal grand jury indicted Nathan Wu-Falkenborg, 49, of Alameda, on 12 counts of bank fraud and three counts of aggravated identity theft, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He made his initial court appearance Friday.
Prosecutors said Wu-Falkenborg worked in fraud prevention at a company that administered a prepaid debit card program known as Direct Express. The program allowed recipients of federal benefits to access their benefits through a prepaid debit card account.
Between September 2021 and March 2022, he allegedly used his access to confidential account information to activate and use numerous Direct Express accounts that had been funded but did not appear to be in use, according to prosecutors.
Wu-Falkenborg allegedly obtained $800,000 from the accounts via ATM withdrawals and online transactions, prosecutors said.
In addition, he allegedly used a customer’s identity to open accounts to execute the scheme and allegedly used debit cards associated with two customers, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors said Wu-Falkenborg faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison and a fine of $1 million for each bank fraud charge and a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison and a fine of $250,000 for each aggravated identity theft charge.
Wu-Falkenborg was released on bond. He is scheduled to appear in court on July 9 for a status conference.