LAS VEGAS – An ex-Marine yesterday was sentenced to 18 months behind bars for stealing IDs and draining the accounts at Pacific Marine CU of 15 Marines stationed in Iraq.
Edgar Hermosillo, 24, used computers at Camp Pendleton, Calif., to obtain personal information to access the credit union accounts.
Hermosillo impersonated the soldiers while calling the credit union and convinced credit union employees to wire funds from the soldiers’ accounts to Western Union locations in Nevada, Texas and New Mexico.
His lawyer blamed the crimes on the strain of combat and the shock of returning home to money troubles after two tours of duty in Iraq. Hermosillo received an honorable discharge as a lance corporal in May 2005.
Hermosillo must pay about $39,000 in restitution and undergo mental health counseling as part of his sentence.
