A Rochester man has been sentenced to federal prison for his role in a large-scale bank fraud scheme involving stolen checks from U.S. Postal Service mailboxes.
According to Michael DiGiacomo, 26-year-old Sheldon Marquis Adams was sentenced to 18 months in prison after being convicted of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. The sentence was handed down by Chief U.S. District Judge Elizabeth A. Wolford.
Federal prosecutors said Adams was part of a scheme that operated between March and September 2023, during which he and others stole hundreds of checks from U.S. Postal Service collection boxes in the Rochester area.
Authorities said the group altered or forged the checks in an attempt to withdraw money from victims’ bank accounts. In some cases, checks were chemically altered using substances like acetone.
Investigators say Adams also used social media to recruit individuals to deposit or cash the stolen checks. Those participants would then withdraw the funds before banks detected the fraud and turn over the money to members of the conspiracy in exchange for a small payment.
On September 29, 2023, Adams was found in possession of materials tied to the scheme, including 15 pages of blank check stock paper and approximately 335 stolen checks taken from mailboxes earlier that year.
Officials say the fraud impacted about 227 individual victims and 36 businesses, along with multiple financial institutions. The total value of the stolen and altered checks was estimated at more than $516,000.
The case is part of ongoing efforts by federal authorities to combat mail theft and financial fraud schemes.
