Acting U.S. Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that TONY RILEY, age 48, of Empire, Louisiana, was charged Friday in a one-count Indictment for committing mail fraud in relation to the BP settlement fund for the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion.
According to the indictment, RILEY submitted false documents to the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (GCCF) and the Deepwater Horizon Economic Claims Center (DHECC), in which he claimed that he suffered lost income in relation to his seafood business. As a result of those false claims, RILEY received $221,681.62 in reimbursement to which he was not entitled.
If convicted, RILEY faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and up to three years of supervised release.
Acting U.S. Attorney Evans reiterated that the indictment is merely a charge and that the guilt of the defendant must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
Acting U.S. Attorney Evans praised the work of the Secret Service New Orleans Field Office. Assistant United States Attorney Matthew Payne is in charge of prosecution.
--DOJ Eastern District of Louisiana