Columbia Lawyer Pleads Guilty, Admits He Made False Statements to Federal Agents

COLUMBIA, SC—United States Attorney Bill Nettles stated today that Michael D. Shavo, age 39, of Columbia, pled guilty today in federal court in Columbia to making a false statement to a governmental agency, a violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1001. United States District Judge Margaret B. Seymour of Columbia accepted the plea and will impose sentence after she has reviewed the presentence report which will be prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.

Evidence presented at the change of plea hearing established that Shavo (a former employee of the law firm headed by John Fitzgerald O’Connor, Jr.) made false statements to federal agents investigating O’Connor’s role in a conspiracy to liquidate and conceal monies and property which had been stolen by a former client, William J. Trier, II, from Trier’s employer, Dixie Narco. Shavo admitted that during his initial interview with federal agents in October of 2007, he knowingly and wilfully concealed relevant facts important to the investigation concerning his knowledge of O’Connor’s role in the criminal activity outlined below.

Both O’Connor (age 63, of Columbia, South Carolina) and attorney John W. Harte, (age 63, of Aiken, South Carolina) have previously entered guilty pleas to conspiracy to commit mail fraud and money laundering. According to the facts elicited at the plea hearings, Harte and O’Connor assisted Trier in laundering embezzled funds. In January 2007, Trier was terminated from Crane Co., a vending machine manufacturing company in Aiken County, as the director of logistics in the shipping department. From 1997 through January 2007, Trier embezzled funds from Crane by creating phony invoices from two fictitious freight transport companies and submitting them to Crane for payment. He used his position to approve the payment of the fraudulent invoices, and received company payments mailed to a Post Office box he had opened as the mailing address for the phantom companies. Over a 10-year period, Trier collected approximately $5,200,000.00 using the false invoice scam. When Trier learned that he was under investigation, he contacted Harte to help him hide assets. According to Harte, he enlisted the help of O’Connor and others.

Trier pled guilty to mail fraud and money laundering on April 30, 2008 and was sentenced to 63 months of imprisonment, ordered to pay $5,272,556 in restitution, and to forfeit millions of dollars in assets. Harte and O’Connor are facing a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000.

Mr. Nettles stated the maximum penalty Shavo can receive is a fine of $250,000 and/or imprisonment for five years, plus a special assessment of $100.00.

The case was investigated by agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Postal Inspector Service, and the Internal Revenue Service. Assistant United States Attorneys Deborah B. Barbier and Mark C. Moore of the Columbia office are prosecuting the cases stemming from this investigation.