Okaloosa County Father and Son Plead Guilty in Wire Fraud Scheme to Defraud Non-Profits

PENSACOLA, FLORIDA – Anthony Floyd Hemphill, 38, and his father, William Hemphill, 58, both of Crestview, Florida, have pled guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with a scheme to defraud non-profit organizations of more than $300,000.  The guilty pleas were announced by Christopher P. Canova, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

During their pleas on February 11, 2016 (Anthony Hemphill), and yesterday (William Hemphill), the conspirators admitted that, between December 2013 and December 2014, they fraudulently represented that A.F.H. Construction LLC owned modular buildings that could be donated to non-profit organizations free of charge, if the non-profit organizations would agree to pay for the transportation and set up of the buildings.  Using high pressure sales tactics, the conspirators persuaded the non-profit organizations to quickly wire advance payments for transportation and set up costs, ostensibly to prevent the modular buildings from being donated to other parties.

Once they had their victims’ money in hand, the Hemphills used delaying tactics and false statements to convince the victims that the modular buildings were in the process of being delivered and set up.  In fact, no modular buildings were ever delivered.

During the conspiracy, the victims wired approximately $311,700 as advance payments for the transportation and set up costs.  Anthony Hemphill used $51,000 of these payments to make a partial restitution payment that he owed in another federal criminal case in the Western District of Texas.  Anthony Hemphill is currently serving a 41-month sentence imposed in the Texas case.  He committed the conduct underlying the modular building fraud while on pre-trial release and/or as a fugitive in the Texas case.

In addition to the conspiracy charge, Anthony Hemphill pled guilty to wire fraud, and William Hemphill pled guilty to making a false statement to a federal agent.

The sentencing hearings are scheduled for May 10, 2016, at 10:30 a.m. (Anthony Hemphill) and 2:00 p.m. (William Hemphill) at the United States Courthouse in Pensacola.

This case resulted from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Kathryn D. Risinger is prosecuting the case.

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General.  The office strives to protect and serve the citizens of the Northern District of Florida through the ethical, vigorous, and impartial enforcement of the laws of the United States, to defend the national security, to improve the safety and quality of life in our communities through the protection of civil rights, and to protect the public funds and financial assets of the United States.  To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website.  For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit http://www.justice.gov/usao/fln/index.html.

For more information, contact:
Amy Alexander, Public Information Officer
(850) 216-3854, amy.alexander@usdoj.gov