Man Sentenced to Over Nine Years for Bank Fraud, Mail Theft, and Postal Robbery Conspiracy

Dezhon McCrae admitted to multiple fraud schemes and helping target U.S. Postal workers for their mailbox keys while on pretrial release.

A former Salem County resident has been sentenced to over nine years in federal prison for his role in a series of financial crimes and violent conspiracies, including multiple bank fraud schemes and the attempted robbery of U.S. Postal Service letter carriers, federal prosecutors announced.

Dezhon McCrae, 25, formerly of Penns Grove, received a 111-month sentence from U.S. District Judge Karen M. Williams in Camden federal court on March 18, 2025. McCrae previously pleaded guilty to six federal charges, including conspiracy to commit bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, possession of stolen mail, possession of a stolen postal key, and conspiracy to commit Hobbs Act robbery.

From May 2018 to February 2020, McCrae was involved in a “card cracking” scheme in which stolen checks were used to fabricate counterfeit versions that were deposited into bank accounts opened or controlled by recruited individuals. Once deposited, the funds were quickly withdrawn before the fraud was detected. McCrae’s direct participation resulted in more than $10,000 in losses, while the broader scheme defrauded banks of more than $274,000. Six co-defendants have already been sentenced, and three others await sentencing.

Despite being charged in that case, McCrae engaged in a second, nearly identical bank fraud operation between May and July 2022, causing an additional $14,000 in financial losses.

While on pretrial release in Georgia in August 2023, McCrae came under investigation after a reported shooting incident at his residence in Paulk County. A subsequent search revealed stolen mail, a stolen U.S. postal key, and evidence on his cellphone connecting him to further fraud. Authorities discovered that McCrae had fabricated a New Jersey driver's license using a real individual’s identity paired with a conspirator’s photo, which was later used in a failed attempt to cash a stolen check.

McCrae’s cell phone also contained incriminating evidence related to two violent robberies of letter carriers in Cumberland County, New Jersey. On June 13, 2023, a carrier in Fairfield Township was attacked by a masked assailant who successfully stole a postal mailbox key. A second robbery attempt occurred on July 3, 2023, in Vineland, where a masked suspect assaulted the carrier with bear spray but failed to obtain the key.

In addition to the 111-month prison term, Judge Williams sentenced McCrae to five years of supervised release and ordered him to pay $24,411.89 in restitution.

The investigation was led by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Homeland Security Investigations in Newark, with assistance from multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Paulk County Sheriff’s Department in Georgia, the New Jersey State Police, the Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office, and local police departments in Glassboro and Cherry Hill.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew B. Johns is prosecuting the case.