Ohio Man Arrested, Charged With Fraud

CONTACT: Barbara Burns   
PHONE:       (716) 843-5817 
FAX #:          (716) 551-3051 

ROCHESTER, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. announced today that Paul Lacey, 56, of Youngstown, Ohio, was arrested and charged by criminal complaint with participating in a wire fraud scheme. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Bradley E. Tyler, who is handling the case, stated that according to the complaint, Lacey traveled from Ohio to Georgia to open a bank account with Bank of America into which approximately $250,00 had been illegally transferred from an attorney’s account in Dansville, NY. With the knowledge that he had no legal right to the proceeds in the Bank of America account, the defendant then withdrew large sums of cash from the account.        

Lacey made an initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Marian W.  Feldman. The defendant be detained pending a detention hearing on April 15, 2015 at 10:30 a.m.

The criminal complaint is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Rochester, NY, Atlanta, Georgia and Youngstown, Ohio.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.