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Possible identity theft hits close home for El Paso couple
By Edith Brady-Lunny
eblunny@pantagraph.com
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EL PASO -- The potential sale of personal information of more than 2 million home loan customers has an El Paso couple keeping a close eye on their credit report.

Randy Ramsey and his wife, Barbara, were notified this week that they are among the possible victims of identity theft at Countrywide Financial Corp.

Two men, including Countrywide employee Rene L. Rebollo, were arrested by the FBI Aug. 1 on federal charges related to the sale of information from as many as 2 million customers of the mortgage lender.

Ramsey urged other Countrywide customers to pay attention to the mailing that contains instructions on how to avoid possible breaches to credit accounts.

“I thought it was solicitation for a credit card. I almost ripped it up and threw it away. People need to make sure they open it and read it,” Ramsey said of the letter.

The records allegedly sold included names, Social Security numbers, birth dates and other sensitive personal information, according to federal charges. Rebollo, a senior financial analyst, was downloading thousands of names from an office computer and selling them in batches of 20,000 for $500 to Wahid Siddiqi, a middleman who then sold the data to companies hoping to make other loans to customers, authorities said.

The consequences of identity theft are something Ramsey said he did not fully consider until he read the letter from his mortgage company.

“I never dreamed this could happen to me,” said Ramsey, who has followed the three steps outlined by Countrywide to try to avoid damage to his credit.

He has signed up for the lender’s offer for free monitoring of his credit reports and opened new checking and credit card accounts. He also made a report to El Paso police about the identity theft.

“This is a case of fraudulent acts. People need to take these steps to protect themselves,” said Ramsey.

Court records in Los Angeles federal district court indicate that Rebollo made as much as $70,000 from the sale of records over two years. Rebollo, 36, worked for Countrywide for about nine years and most recently was assigned to the firm’s subprime mortgage division.

Countrywide was acquired in July by Bank of America Corp.

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Reader comments on this story - 1 total

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

Jarhead71 wrote on Sep 22, 2008 8:31 AM:

" Everyone has to monitor their credit reports at least twice a year to be half way safe. In the final analysis though, it makes no difference. The companies that compromise your identity are never held accountable and you spend a great deal of time and money disputing the fraudulent entries on your credit rating, sometimes to no avail. My families identities were compromised by a major insurance company, a major bank and the VA. We got notified and an apology. One of my daughter's SSN ended up being used by an illegal to work at a discount retailer. My daughter had to PROVE she was not working there and that she was actually herself. "
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