BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (TRIBUNE) – Prim F. Escalona, the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama, announced on Wednesday that a group of men who were part of a conspiracy to sell stolen checks and bank login information have been sentenced for their crimes.

The defendants included the administrators of multiple scam Telegram channels, a former U.S. Postal employee who received bribes to steal checks from the mail, and a credit union employee who misappropriated customer account information. Among those sentenced this week were:

Joshua Kendarius Rogers, aka “Lucky Luciano,” 24, of Irondale–Rogers was an administrator of a Telegram channel called “The Lucky Shop,” which sold stolen checks and bank login information. Rogers was sentenced to 90 months in prison for one count of conspiracy to pay bribes, one count of conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud, and one count of aggravated identity theft. Rogers pleaded guilty to the charges yesterday.

Michael Christopher Rowser, aka “Muney Mike,” 24, of McCalla.–Rowser abused his position as a U.S. Postal employee by taking bribes to steal checks that were sold on “The Lucky Shop” channel. Rowser was sentenced to 70 months in prison for one count of conspiracy to receive bribes and one count of conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud. A federal jury convicted Rowser of those charges in January.

Duane Wiley Smith, aka “Dubskii,” 24, of Springville–Smith was an administrator of “The Lucky Shop” and similar channels called “Glass House Records” and “Glass House Records V2.” Smith was sentenced to 48 months in prison for one count of conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. Smith pleaded guilty to those charges in October 2024.

Levar McGhee-Parrish, aka “Ja Moracks,” 25, of Fultondale–McGhee-Parrish was an administrator of “The Lucky Shop” and a similar channel called “GRUBHUB.” McGhee-Parrish was sentenced to 40 months in prison for one count of conspiracy to commit wire and bank fraud. McGhee-Parrish pleaded guilty to the charge in March.

According to court documents, “The Lucky Shop” operated as a criminal marketplace. Rogers, its primary administrator, obtained stolen checks from Rowser, a mail handler at the U.S. Postal Service’s Processing & Distribution Center in Birmingham, and then posted redacted copies of those checks on the channel to market them for sale.

When customers of “The Lucky Shop” paid Rogers to purchase stolen checks, a portion of their profits would be kicked back to Rowser.

The evidence established that Rowser received approximately $106,000 in bribe payments over the course of a year for his role supplying checks to the Telegram channel.

In addition to stolen checks, Rogers also sold bank login information, which he obtained from a corrupt credit union employee.

Smith and McGhee-Parrish assisted Rogers with the administration of “The Lucky Shop,” but also had their own Telegram channels where they sold stolen checks to scammers looking to commit bank fraud.

Beyond that, Smith and McGhee-Parrish worked with Rogers and others to commit bank fraud—depositing fraudulent checks, submitting fraudulent loan applications, initiating fraudulent Automated Clearing House transfers, and using stolen passcodes to withdraw funds from ATMs.

This case was brought as part of a crackdown on scam Telegram channels operating out of the Northern District of Alabama.

Other defendants who have been prosecuted in related cases include Mekhi Diwone Harris, who ran a Telegram channel called “Work Related,” and Gabriel Samuel Odiot, who ran a Telegram channel called “RICH OFF PLAYS.” Together, these channels are responsible for the sale of tens of millions of dollars in stolen checks.