Man blows more than $20,000 after stealing identities on the dark web

Ripping away identities from people right off the dark web and using their information for the time of his life.

Police say Kwame Richardson went on a crime spree in downtown Fort Myers, charging food and drinks at various spots, including Celsius Nightclub, The Cigar Bar, City Tavern, Indigo Room and more.

Investigators say he did it with IDs he got from the dark web.

The charges added up to almost $25,000, and Lee County Clerk of Court documents state that detectives found more than 60 debit and credit card numbers on Richardson’s phones.

He didn’t have the physical cards, but one of the detectives who cracked this case said he didn’t need them to use them.

A document details how Fort Myers detectives cracked a theft case originating from the dark web.

“This is the first time I’ve found or come across one with this much theft,” said Detective Dietz.

Dietz said Richardson obtained multiple people’s credit card and ID information using the dark web, a hidden part of the internet where people can engage in illegal activity like selling personal information.

Dietz said that’s what Richardson did before making a series of unauthorized purchases at multiple downtown Fort Myers businesses.

“He created counterfeit credit cards on his phone to make it appear that he had tap to pay, and then everything was entered in manually when it didn’t work because it wasn’t actual tap to pay. He just had the information,” Dietz said.

Richardson spent:

• $2,584 at the Celsius nightclub.
• $4,777 at Cigar Bar.
• $930 at The Indigo Room
• $2,347 at City Tavern
• $18,112 at Sky Bar.
• $521 Irie Jamaican.

It’s why Dietz leaves businesses and viewers with this message.

“Businesses need to be more strict with how they accept credit cards and debit cards, and individuals just need to be diligent and check their accounts on a daily basis, and do credit reports quarterly,” Dietz said.

Dietz said the businesses reported the fraudulent purchases to police and said Richardson also provided a fake ID and name to elude police.

He is now out on bond, awaiting his next court appearance.