A former Florida corrections officer is going to prison himself for a tax fraud scheme in which he acknowledged stealing inmates' identities.
U.S. District Judge James Moody sentenced 26-year-old Jerry St. Fleur to more than four years behind bars. St. Fleur pleaded guilty in July to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.
According to a plea agreement, St. Fleur used his job at the Zephyrhills Correctional Facility between January 2011 and May 2014 to illegally obtain personal identifying information from current and former inmates. St. Fleur then used that information to file fraudulent tax returns.
Authorities say St. Fleur filed 182 phony tax returns that requested more than $500,000 in refunds.
In addition to the prison time, St. Fleur must forfeit more than $61,000 that was traced to the scheme.
