De’Andre McClarin
Introduction
De’Andre Kenterrious L. McClarin, 28, of Thomasville, Georgia, was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release on October 28, 2026, after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud on December 30, 2025. Federal prosecutors identified McClarin as the leader of a $115,000 check-theft and forgery scheme that stretched across South Georgia and North Florida, built on stolen mail, doctored checks, and recruits found through Facebook. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia announced the sentencing on October 30, 2026, alongside the sentencing of his top co-conspirator.
Background Information
Beginning in January 2022, investigators found, McClarin used a stolen postal key to break into USPS mail receptacles and collection boxes, stealing checks and check information. He edited the checks and even used a check printer to produce fraudulent checks, according to court documents and statements made in court. He recruited people to participate in the fraud, often on Facebook, by having them share their personal and bank information so he could deposit the stolen and forged checks into their accounts and withdraw the money. Financial institutions targeted in the conspiracy included Truist, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, U.S. Bank, and Navy Federal Credit Union, among many others, with total losses of $115,936.05.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Convicted and sentenced. McClarin pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and has been sentenced to 60 months in federal prison. The scheme’s conduct is admitted through his plea and laid out in court records; the sentences below are court-imposed facts.
The scheme ran on stolen mail. McClarin’s stolen postal key gave him access to USPS receptacles and collection boxes across the region, and the checks and check information he stole became raw material for forgeries he edited or printed himself, per the court record summarized by prosecutors. The recruits he gathered through Facebook handed over their own personal and bank information to become deposit channels — one of them, Danmon Jerone Wilkerson, 25, of Tallahassee, Florida, set up an account at JP Morgan Chase Bank for the scheme. Agents ultimately determined that the McClarin-led conspiracy caused $115,936.05 in losses to the banks and credit unions it targeted.
The sentences landed in a series of court appearances through 2025 and 2026. McClarin, the scheme’s leader, received 60 months in prison and five years of supervised release on October 28, 2026, for his December 30, 2025 guilty plea. Wilkerson was sentenced the same day to 27 months in prison plus five years of supervised release for his March 19 guilty plea to the same count. In addition, the defendants were ordered to pay a combined total of $115,936.05 in restitution. Senior U.S. District Judge W. Louis Sands presided over the case, and the release notes there is no parole in the federal system.
Six other co-conspirators, with varying levels of involvement, were charged federally, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and were sentenced: Kemareon Bryant, 28, of Thomasville, received 18 months in prison on June 18; Jerry Hayes, 54, of Thomasville, received 12 months and one day on November 20, 2025; Jaylen Filmore, 24, of Thomasville, received one day on May 28; Jelan Hayes, 28, of Thomasville, received one day on September 3; Angela Cookley, 25, of Tallahassee, received time served on June 18; and Kembrick McClendon, 37, of Thomasville, received time served on August 20 — each with three years of supervised release.
Public Reaction and Consequences
The Justice Department framed the sentencings as the dismantling of the conspiracy. U.S. Attorney William R. “Will” Keyes said: “Stealing checks and forging financial documents is not a victimless crime. These types of schemes siphon money from hardworking individuals and local businesses, causing real financial harm across our communities,” and thanked the federal and local partners whose work he said held those responsible accountable. Rodney M. Hopkins, Inspector in Charge of the Postal Inspection Service’s Atlanta Division, called the sentencings a warning that anyone who abuses the U.S. Postal Service and exploits the public’s trust for personal gain will be held accountable. The case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Thomas County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Thomasville Police Department, and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Hannah Couch.
Current Status
McClarin is serving a 60-month federal prison sentence followed by five years of supervised release, imposed October 28, 2026 by Senior U.S. District Judge W. Louis Sands after his December 30, 2025 guilty plea to conspiracy to commit bank fraud. He and Wilkerson were ordered to pay a combined $115,936.05 in restitution for the losses their conspiracy caused to the banks and credit unions. With every named member of the scheme having pleaded guilty and been sentenced — from McClarin’s five years down to one-day terms and time served for the minor participants — the case the agencies announced on October 30, 2026 is closed at the sentencing stage.
Impact on Their Career/Life
McClarin’s leadership role cost him the longest sentence in the conspiracy: five years in federal prison, five years of supervised release after that, and a share of a five-figure restitution bill. The court record permanently documents the scheme’s mechanics — the stolen postal key, the check printer, the Facebook recruits — as his own admitted conduct. The release notes there is no parole in the federal system, so the 60-month term is the sentence he serves. His supervised-release obligation adds five more years of court oversight after the prison term ends, alongside his share of the conspiracy’s court-ordered restitution.
Sources
- U.S. Attorney’s Office, Middle District of Georgia, “Leader of South Georgia Check-Theft and Forgery Scheme Sentenced to Prison,” October 30, 2026 — source