Prescott Man Sentenced in Massive Fraud Scheme
| U.S. Attorney’s Office February 13, 2014 |
MADISON, WI—John W. Vaudreuil, United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced that Anthony Hood, 33, Prescott, Wisconsin, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge William M. Conley to 30 months in federal prison for interstate transportation of securities obtained by fraud. Judge Conley also ordered Hood to pay restitution as follows: $21,364.56 to the Village of Ellsworth, Wisconsin; $257,853 to Frontier Ag and Turf, New Richmond, Wisconsin; and $300,000 to Federated Mutual Insurance Company, the insurance company for Frontier Ag and Turf.
On November 13, 2013, Hood pleaded guilty to two counts of interstate transportation of stolen securities. During the guilty plea hearing, Hood admitted that while working as a Frontier Ag and Turf manager, he sold numerous John Deere tractors and other equipment to a Nebraska implement dealer. Hood admitted that he diverted part of the purchase price for each implement by convincing the Nebraska dealer to send two checks for each purchase. Hood admitted that he then deposited the diverted checks into his checking account. Hood also admitted that he obtained funds from the Village of Ellsworth to build and develop a NAPA auto parts store. Hood admitted that he used false invoices to obtain money from the Village of Ellsworth.
In imposing the 30-month prison term and ordering restitution, Judge Conley described Hood’s crime as a “massive fraud” perpetuated against victims who should have been able to trust Hood. Judge Conley noted that Hood spent the fraudulently obtained money to sustain a “selfish lifestyle” of spending at restaurants, clothing stores, and retailers.
United States Attorney John Vaudreuil commended the efforts of the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation in investigating Hood’s fraudulent schemes and said, “We are very proud of the excellent teamwork shown by federal and local law enforcement in this case. This is another great example of the success we can achieve working together.” The prosecution of this case has been handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy M. O’Shea.