by Mike Donoghue, Vermont News First
Federal authorities have arrested five out-of-state suspects as part of more than a $500,000 fraud perpetrated on banks and credit unions throughout Vermont and the Northeast.
The five arrests were made during synchronized raids at several locations, including in New York and New Jersey on Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Vermont said.
Also being sought are two others named in the nine-count indictment, which charges wire fraud conspiracy, bank fraud conspiracy, and aggravated identity theft. Their two names were redacted in the federal indictment secured by Assistant U.S. Attorney Eugenia A. P. Cowles in Burlington on May 28.
The suspects conspired in Vermont and elsewhere between August 2024 and at least August 2025 to execute a scheme to obtain money and other property by false pretenses from various financial institutions, the indictment said.
At least a dozen financial institutions were targeted across Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine as part of the fraud, records show. They included the Northfield Savings Bank, East Rise Credit Union, NorthCountry Federal Credit Union, the National Bank of Middlebury, the Members First Credit Union and the Bar Harbor Bank and Trust.
The investigation, which was spearheaded by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Division in Vermont, soon spread to other states. First Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan A. Ophardt said the office of the United States Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration also joined in the case.
Those arrested were: Corey Vasquez, 35, Mark Ochoa, 34, Lindsay Sheehan, 37, and James Michael Roosevelt Williams, 34, all of the Bronx and Davin Olin, 36, of New York City.
The indictment said the seven defendants, along with at least two other unnamed persons, obtained money from financial institutions by opening accounts in Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and elsewhere. They would deposit U.S. Treasury checks in the names of other individuals using false identification documents and then withdraw funds from the deposited money, the indictment said.
Through the course of the conspiracy the defendants deposited checks worth more than $500,000, the indictment noted.
The indictment also seeks a forfeiture all funds directly or indirectly obtained by the seven defendants through illegal means.
It was part of the conspiracy that Olin would obtain U.S. Treasury checks in the names of various individuals, the indictment said. He also obtained false identification documents for those names and would provide the stolen U.S. Treasury checks and the fake identification documents to the other co-conspirators, the indictment said.
As part of the conspiracy, Vasquez and Roosevelt Williams would obtain the checks and fake IDs from Olin, the indictment said. It noted Olin would transport other members of the conspiracy to the various financial institutions in order to open bank accounts under the names of the intended U.S. Treasury check recipients, deposit checks and obtain funds.
If convicted, each defendant faces up to 30 years in prison. Vasquez, Ochoa, and Sheehan also face aggravated identity theft charges which carry a mandatory two-year consecutive sentence.
Olin, who also has a home address in Hackensack, N.J. was arrested in New Jersey. Ochoa, Sheehan and Roosevelt Williams were arrested at sites in New York.
Vasquez, who is currently being held on state criminal charges in Kentucky, was notified of his indictment.
Federal agents continued the search for the other wanted persons.
It was unclear how soon all the defendants would be in Vermont for their arraignments in U.S. District Court.
Olin appeared in federal court in New Jersey for a removal hearing on Wednesday and was detained pending further proceedings on Monday.
Ochoa and Roosevelt Williams appeared in federal court for the Southern District of New York also for removal hearings on Wednesday and were ordered released upon satisfaction of conditions. Sheehan is expected to appear in court in New York for her removal hearing later today.
On April 7, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division.
Ophardt noted the core mission of the Fraud Division is to zealously investigate and prosecute those who steal or fraudulently misuse taxpayer dollars. Department of Justice efforts to combat fraud support President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs, Ophardt noted.
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