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Tuesday, June 24, 2008 10:52 AM Wilson County men plead guilty to crop fraud By Gina Childress | Times Staff Writer RALEIGH -- A Macclesfield resident and a Lucama resident both pleaded guilty in federal court Monday for their role in a crop insurance fraud and money laundering scheme. Both men were arrested and charged by federal investigators in what was dubbed operation "Under the Barn." According to a press release issued by the U.S. Department of Justice, Joseph Eugene Eason, 77, of Macclesfield and Kenneth Gene Kelly, 46, of Lucama, entered guilty pleas before Judge James C. Dever III. Both men were allegedly involved in a scheme to defraud crop insurance companies and used a Wilson tobacco broker to sell tobacco in various names. As a way to conceal the payouts, Kelly received the tobacco payments and broke them down into smaller sums so financial institutions would not have to file a Currency Transaction Report. Typically, those reports are issued by a financial institution when a transaction is greater than $10,000. Eason and Kelly were both charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering. "No one should regard the end of the tobacco quota program as a license to commit crop insurance fraud," U.S. Attorney George E.B. Holding said. Both men could face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $500,000 or twice the value of the funds involved in the offense, whichever is greater, and up to three years of supervised release. The press release did not give the amount of funds the duo is charged with taking. The investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Division, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Inspector General and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Risk Management Agency. Both Eason and Kelly will be sentenced at a later date. gina@wilsontimes.com | 265-7821 |
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