Bronx man gets 3 ½ years in prison in Capital Region bank fraud scheme

A Bronx man was sentenced on Tuesday to 3 ½ years in prison for using fake identifications to withdraw a total of $58,000 from Capital Region banks.

Antonio Vargas, 58, had previously pleaded guilty to bank fraud and aggravated identity theft.

He admitted that in June and July of 2022, he presented bank tellers with counterfeit U.S. passport cards and driver’s licenses with his photograph but with the names and other personal information of real customers of Trustco Bank, Pioneer Bank, Broadview Federal Credit Union, Adirondack Trust Bank and the Saratoga National Bank and Trust, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

He fraudulently withdrew the funds from customers’ accounts in Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga and Schenectady counties. Vargas also committed similar crimes in Louisiana and Connecticut before coming to New York, prosecutors said.

Vargas was arrested in July 2022 after he unsuccessfully tried to withdraw funds from a Saratoga National Bank branch, and has remained in federal custody since then.

Vargas also must serve 5 years of post-release supervision and make restitution.