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West Alabama Man, Tuscaloosa Woman Sentenced in Separate Disaster Fraud Cases

Seeded on Fri Feb 17, 2012 3:18 PM EST
Read ArticleArticle Source: FBI Alabama - U.S. Attorney's Office
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BIRMINGHAM—A federal judge today sentenced a West Alabama man to 21 months in prison for fraudulently claiming disaster benefits following the April 27 tornadoes in Alabama, announced U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance, FBI Special Agent in Charge Patrick J. Maley, and James E. Ward, Special Agent in Charge, Department of Homeland Security, Office of the Inspector General.

U.S. District Judge L. Scott Coogler sentenced ROBERT LEE SPIRES, 47, on two counts of attempted wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud the Federal Emergency Management Agency of disaster-related benefits. Judge Coogler ordered Spires to pay FEMA $1,585 in restitution. A federal grand jury indicted Spires on the wire fraud charges in September. He pleaded guilty to the charges in November.

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In Spires’ scheme, he received $1,114 for rental assistance and $471 for personal property assistance from FEMA after falsely claiming that he was renting a house on Short 25th Avenue East in Tuscaloosa when it was severely damaged by a tornado, according to court documents. He did not live or own property at that address. Spires made further attempts to defraud FEMA, seeking disaster benefits for non-existent vision-related expenses and for damages to a car and home appliances he did not own.

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Reply#1 - Fri Feb 17, 2012 3:18 PM EST
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