BUFFALO, N.Y. — A Buffalo man was sentenced to jail Monday for deceiving a bank and making fraudulent purchases.
Gerald Battle, 53, pleaded guilty before the Erie County Court for making unauthorized purchases from July 2018 to November 2021.
The Erie County District Attorney's Office says Battle was a former bank employee and got ahold of customers and the bank's information. This would allow him to make fraudulent purchases on the identities of multiple people by using their debit card information.
Smith would make purchases at various restaurants, grocery stores, and online retailers over the course of more than three years.
An investigation started after a restaurant employee reported to the Erie County Sheriff's Office that the business was charged back by the bank for a debit card used in an unauthorized transaction on a food delivery order.
Investigators determined that Smith fraudulently got personal banking information that belong to numerous people. He would use their debit card information to make purchases for himself and all of the items would be delivered to his apartment on Delaware Avenue in Buffalo.
The victims who reported the fraudulent purchases were reimbursed by the bank. However, the businesses that were impacted by these purchases were not and suffered a loss of money as a result of the chargebacks.
Battle pleaded guilty to:
- One count of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree (Class “D” felony).
- One count of identity Theft in the First Degree (Class “D” felony).
- One count of Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree (Class “E” felony).
Smith pleaded guilty to the highest charges in March.
