Ohio Couple Receives Sentences for $2M Insurance Fraud Linked to Arson Scheme
An Ohio couple has been sentenced for orchestrating a scheme that defrauded insurance companies of over $2 million by conspiring to set insured houses on fire, as announced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio.
Lonnie White, 48, from Willoughby Hills, Ohio, received a sentence of 53 months in prison from Chief U.S. District Judge Sara Lioi after pleading guilty in August to several charges detailed in the indictment:
- Conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud
- Conspiracy to commit money laundering offenses
- Conspiracy to use fire in the commission of a felony
In addition to his prison sentence, White was ordered to serve three years of supervised release and to pay $2,375,861 in restitution. The sentence was imposed on January 23.
White’s spouse, Lisa Ogletree, 48, was sentenced to five years of probation and 810 days of location-monitored home confinement after pleading guilty last August to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Chief Judge Lioi imposed her sentence on January 28.
The indictment revealed that White and Ogletree, either directly or through accomplices, purchased houses on the east side of Cleveland. They transferred these properties to nominal owners who had fake renters, insured the properties for hundreds of thousands of dollars, and then arranged to set the houses on fire. They submitted fraudulent insurance claims for the destroyed properties, with White orchestrating the fires to make them appear accidental.
Once they received the insurance payouts for the fire damage, the nominal owners distributed the funds to White and Ogletree. The couple then transferred the money to various bank accounts for their personal benefit and to further their fraudulent scheme.
According to court documents, the scheme involved at least six fires and resulted in more than $2.3 million in fraudulent claims between 2013 and 2019.
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An Ohio couple has been sentenced for orchestrating a scheme that defrauded insurance companies of over $2 million by conspiring to set insured houses on fire, as announced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio.
Lonnie White, 48, from Willoughby Hills, Ohio, received a sentence of 53 months in prison from Chief U.S. District Judge Sara Lioi after pleading guilty in August to several charges detailed in the indictment:
- Conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud
- Conspiracy to commit money laundering offenses
- Conspiracy to use fire in the commission of a felony
In addition to his prison sentence, White was ordered to serve three years of supervised release and to pay $2,375,861 in restitution. The sentence was imposed on January 23.
White’s spouse, Lisa Ogletree, 48, was sentenced to five years of probation and 810 days of location-monitored home confinement after pleading guilty last August to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Chief Judge Lioi imposed her sentence on January 28.
The indictment revealed that White and Ogletree, either directly or through accomplices, purchased houses on the east side of Cleveland. They transferred these properties to nominal owners who had fake renters, insured the properties for hundreds of thousands of dollars, and then arranged to set the houses on fire. They submitted fraudulent insurance claims for the destroyed properties, with White orchestrating the fires to make them appear accidental.
Once they received the insurance payouts for the fire damage, the nominal owners distributed the funds to White and Ogletree. The couple then transferred the money to various bank accounts for their personal benefit and to further their fraudulent scheme.
According to court documents, the scheme involved at least six fires and resulted in more than $2.3 million in fraudulent claims between 2013 and 2019.
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