MISSISSIPPI MAN SENTENCED FOR KATRINA FRAUD

GULFPORT, Miss. – Robert A. Martin of Gulfport was sentenced to serve four months in prison and ordered to pay $2,358 in restitution to FEMA for submitting a false claim for Hurricane Katrina disaster assistance funds, U.S. Attorney Dunn Lampton of the Southern District of Mississippi announced today.   In November, 2006, Martin pled guilty to charges that he received $5,864 from FEMA by providing a false address in Gulfport, Mississippi, and claiming hurricane damage at that address.  At the time Hurricane Katrina hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast, Martin was in jail at the Harrison County Correctional Facility.
           
            In September, 2005, Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales created the national  Hurricane Katrina Fraud Task Force, designed to deter, investigate and prosecute disaster-related federal crimes such as charity fraud, identity theft, procurement fraud and insurance fraud.  The Hurricane Katrina Fraud Task Force - chaired by Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division, Alice S. Fisher, includes members from the FBI, the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, the Postal Inspector’s Office and the Executive Office of United States Attorneys, among others.

            Pursuant to the Justice Department initiative, a local Katrina Fraud Task Force, consisting of over 20 Federal and State law enforcement agencies, was formed in the Southern District of Mississippi to pursue and prosecute individuals who engage in fraud associated with the hurricanes.              

            If anyone has information concerning possible fraud being committed during the post-Katrina recovery effort, please call either the DHS-OIG Fraud Hotline at 1-866-720-5721 or the FBI Fraud Hotline at 1-800-225-5324.