United States v. Lonnie Lillard

MEMORANDUM

Lonnie Lillard appeals his conviction following a jury trial for fraud and conspiracy to commit fraud arising out of his involvement in a pre-paid debit card scheme. We have jurisdiction to review a defendant’s challenges to his conviction and sentence under 18 U.S.C. § 3742 (a) and 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We affirm in part, but vacate the sentence on the conspiracy count and remand for resentencing.

In July 2006, an investigation into fraudulent pre-paid debit card transactions led law enforcement officers to Room 26006 of the Treasure Island Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. The officers executing the search warrant for Room 26006 found evidence indicating the existence of a fraudulent debit card scheme, including a merchant credit card terminal and keypad, a laptop computer, receipts of sales and returns, money orders, and re-encoded credit cards, gift cards, and pre-paid Visa cards. Evidence in Room 26006 linked Lillard to the fraudulent scheme and hotel records showed that Room 27050 was registered to Lillard. The officers conducting the search of Room 26006 ran Lillard’s name through a criminal database and turned up felony convictions for forgery and…