Man gets 40 years for identity theft, other charges

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - A Mississippi man has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for multiple charges, including identity theft.

Attorney General Jim Hood, in a news release Thursday, said 38-year-old Kenneth Blakeney, of Columbus, pleaded guilty Wednesday before Chickasaw County Circuit Court Judge John Andrew Gregory to one felony count of identity theft, four felony counts of fraudulent use of identity and one count of the sale of methamphetamine.

Gregory also ordered Blakeney to pay fees and court costs.

Hood’s office says Blakeney, between November and January, converted numerous individuals’ personal information into credit cards, online checking accounts, and other financial instruments for his own gain. At the time of the crimes, Blakeney was on parole for drug-related crimes.