White-collar crime investigations are often complex and defendants routinely receive tough sentences.
Earlier this month, the former aide to ex-U.S. Rep. Steve Stockman was sentenced to 18 months in prison for helping the former Congressman carry out a campaign finance scam which prosecutors described as a “white-collar crime spree.”
Jason Posey was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release by U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal, the Texas Tribune reported. He was ordered to pay back about $500,000 that was taken from wealthy Republican donors and used for personal and campaign finances.
Posey admitted one count each of wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering. In late 2018, Thomas Dodd, another former Stockman aide, received an 18-month prison sentence for his role in the scam.
Last year, Stockman, a former Republican Congressman from Texas, received a 10-year prison sentence. He was convicted of defrauding two Republican donors and diverting their $1.25 million to his personal and campaign expenses.
A jury in a federal court in Houston found Stockman guilty of all but one of the 24 white-collar felonies he was charged with. The jury only acquitted him of wire fraud.
Stockman served two terms in the U.S. House before losing a challenge to U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas in 2014.
Stockman’s corruption trial lasted almost a month. He was tried on corruption charges including wire fraud, mail fraud, money laundering and violations of federal election laws.
The former Congressman was accused of using charitable donations improperly for unrelated efforts. These included campaign and personal expenses ranging from buying a new dishwasher to conducting undercover surveillance of a perceived political rival.
Stockman is not the only prominent Texas politician to be convicted of corruption in recent years.
In 2018, former Texas senator Carlos Uresti was sentenced to 12 years in prison on fraud charges.
A judge also ordered the Democrat to pay $6.3 million in restitution to investors he defrauded in a Ponzi scheme.
The 54-year-old San Antonio lawmaker was convicted in February 2018 on 11 counts of money laundering and wire and securities fraud. The charges related to his role as general counsel for FourWinds Logistics, a fracking and sand company that filed for bankruptcy in 2015.
In Texas, white-collar crimes like fraud, tax evasion, money laundering, and embezzlement are surprisingly common. Our Dallas defense team represents many people charged with these complicated crimes. Call us today at 214-720-9552.
