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Dothan man pleads guilty to fraud plot involving jail inmates: Records

DOTHAN, Ala (WDHN) — A 35-year-old Dothan man has pled guilty to federal charges relating to an alleged fraud scheme involving Houston County Jail inmates.

Jalen Kendel Whaley has pled guilty to one count of Wire Fraud and one count of Aggravated Identity Theft

Since Whaley pled guilty, prosecutors dropped 13 similar charges, six counts of Wire Fraud and six counts of Aggravated Identity Theft, and one count of Aggravated ID Theft in Relation to ID Documents.

Whaley and his alleged co-conspirator, Courtney Byrd, 33, were indicted by a grand jury in March of this year.

According to the indictment, the two hacked into the personal financial accounts of several unnamed victims, took an undisclosed amount of money from each victim, and deposited those funds into the accounts of different Houston County Jail inmates.

When the inmates were released from jail, they were given the stolen funds from their accounts, the indictment states.

The indictment also claimed Whaley and Byrd stole information and IDs, using them to pay for hotels and collect unemployment benefits.

Byrd is currently awaiting trial and Whaley could face a maximum sentence of twenty-two years.