Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel recently announced that two Mount Pleasant residents, Averill Dintaman, 46, and Daniel Nolan, 51, waived preliminary examinations and were bound over for trial in Eaton County’s 56th Circuit Court on felony charges related to an alleged identity theft and unclaimed property fraud scheme worth over $500,000.

A third co-defendant, Dwayne Johnson, 59, of St. Louis, waived his preliminary examination and was bound over for trial in June. Prosecutors allege that in 2022, Dintaman, Nolan, and Johnson conspired to steal a victim’s identity and forged a durable power of attorney to obtain an unclaimed property check worth $579,551.99. Johnson allegedly posed as the victim at the Michigan Department of Treasury’s Unclaimed Property Office to secure a second copy of the check. The case was referred to Nessel’s office by the Department of Treasury.

“I am pleased to see this case move forward to trial,” Nessel said in a release. “My office will continue working with the Department of Treasury to ensure that those who commit identity theft and seek to profit at the expense of honest Michiganders are prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

Dintaman faces charges of conspiracy to commit false pretenses ($100,000 or more), a 20-year felony; uttering and publishing, a 14-year felony; forgery, a 14-year felony; and using a computer to commit a crime, a 20-year felony. Nolan is charged with conspiracy to commit false pretenses ($100,000 or more), a 20-year felony; forgery, a 14-year felony; and using a computer to commit a crime, a 20-year felony. Johnson faces charges of conspiracy to commit false pretenses ($100,000 or more), a 20-year felony; state identification card counterfeiting/forging/using to commit a felony, a 10-year felony; and identity theft, a 5-year felony.

Dintaman and Nolan are scheduled to appear before Judge Janice Cunningham on Oct. 17. Johnson’s next court date is Sept. 11.