THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, September 18, 1996 TAG: 9609180440
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LYNN WALTZ, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: 63 lines
The ringleader of the largest cellular ``clone-phone'' operation in Hampton Roads has been ordered to pay nearly half a million dollars to phone companies defrauded in the scam.
Derrick ``Dashon'' Wilson, the ringleader, and his girlfriend, Kisha Miller, were both sentenced in federal court this week. Wilson got the maximum sentence of 33 months in prison.
Miller got the minimum of three years' supervised probation with no active jail time. She was ordered to pay $607 in restitution.
Clone-phone operations steal legitimate cellular phone numbers from the airwaves, then program them into other phones.
They then sell the reprogrammed phones on the black market to people who use them to make illegal calls charged to others' phone bills.
Since Wilson's operation was shut down, federal agents have seen a significant drop in the amount of cloning in the area, said Secret Service agent-in-charge Larry Kumjian.
Kumjian said the investigation was continuing into other operations in Hampton Roads.
Wilson was convicted of trafficking in clone phones. Miller was convicted of using illegally cloned phones.
Miller's attorney painted a picture of a young woman who was led astray by her boyfriend, a convicted felon.
Judge Rebecca Beach Smith said Tuesday that while Wilson did not deserve a second chance, Miller did.
``This is a crime against society and the public,'' Smith said after Miller apologized in court. ``Legitimate users have to pay for the illegal use. There is a rippling effect in society when one person cheats. You need to apologize to society and to your family for letting them down.''
In handing down her sentences, Smith said the crime of cloning phones cannot be separated from other illegal activities.
``We all know they are not used to legitimate purposes,'' Smith said. ``They are used to carry on the drug business and other illegal activities.''
During a raid at Wilson's house in May, Secret Service agents seized 40 phones and 1.4 grams of opium.
About 20 other phones were seized in four other raids.
The sentencings end a yearlong joint investigation into cellular phone fraud in Hampton Roads, which mushroomed from about $10,000 per month in 1994 to about $250,000 per month in 1995. About 650 phones have been cloned since January.
Wilson intercepted phone numbers between March 1995 and May 1996, court papers indicate. Using computer equipment, he programmed the numbers - a combination of serial numbers and phone numbers - into cellular phones, creating a replica of the original phone.
Wilson then sold the phones to customers for a monthly fee. The cloned numbers were from Hampton Roads, California, North Carolina and Pennsylvania, court papers indicate.
Most fraudulent phone bills are now caught before they go to customers. GTE Mobilnet said some bills have been as much as $150,000. ILLUSTRATION: HOW IT WORKS
Clone-phone operations steal legitimate cellular phone numbers
from the airwaves, then program them into other phones. They then
sell the reprogrammed phones on the black market to people who use
them to make illegal calls charged to others' phone bills.
KEYWORDS: CLONE PHONE CELLULAR PHONE FRAUD by CNB