Cape Girardeau Man Sentenced to Prison for Identity Theft, Pandemic Fraud

CAPE GIRARDEAU - U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. on Tuesday sentenced a man who used stolen identities to fraudulently apply for pandemic loans, file tax returns and seek state benefits to 39 months in prison.

Judge Limbaugh also ordered Myles Benjamin Depew, 35, of Cape Girardeau, to pay $25,000 restitution to the United States and $10,728 to the State of Missouri.

Depew used the name of someone else to fraudulently apply for and receive an $11,000 Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) in June of 2020. The next month, Depew used another person's name to fraudulently apply for and receive a $14,000 EIDL loan. Finally, he used a third person's identity to open a checking account with a West Virginia-based bank. Depew prepared two fraudulent Missouri state tax returns, triggering a refund of $2,060 into the bank account in February of 2022 and $8,668 in April of 2023.

U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration agents interviewed Depew, who estimated that he had spent about $40,000 on casino gambling, $5,000 on food and another $5,000 on methamphetamine. Depew used his job as a tax preparer to gain access to names, birthdates and Social Security numbers.

Depew pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Cape Girardeau in February to three counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.

The U.S. Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Willis prosecuted the case.