Toddorius Goodwin, of Atlanta, was sentenced Tuesday to 36 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy involving counterfeit checks cashed at banks and credit unions in Utah, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Utah.
Goodwin, 34, was also sentenced to five years of supervised release and ordered by U.S. District Court Judge Tena Campbell to pay over $214,000 in restitution, the department said.
“Seeking justice for financial fraud is a priority,” U.S. Attorney Trina A. Higgins of the District of Utah said in a statement. “Mr. Goodwin’s behavior demonstrates a disrespect for the law and the community.”
According to the department, Goodwin and his associates executed a sophisticated check fraud operation from April to October 2022.
The group reportedly traveled multiple times from Georgia to Utah, where they recruited vulnerable individuals locally to cash counterfeit checks.
The plot involved stealing payroll checks from private mailboxes, altering the payee names to those of recruited individuals, and instructing the recruits to enter various banks to cash the forged checks in exchange for a small portion of the profits, according to the department.