STATE PRISONER SENTENCED FOR KATRINA FRAUD

GULFPORT, Miss. – A Biloxi man in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections at the time of Katrina was sentenced Tuesday, January 29, 2008, in U.S. District Court in Gulfport before Federal District Judge Louis Guirola, U.S. Attorney Dunn Lampton of the Southern District of Mississippi announced today.

GEORGE B. BUCKLEY, II, of Biloxi, was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison consecutive to his state time, for charges of filing a false claim with FEMA for disaster assistance, three counts of making false statements to FEMA, stealing government funds from the Federal Emergency Managment Agency and four counts of wire fraud. Buckley was ordered to serve 3 years of post release supervision after completing his sentence. Buckley was also ordered to make restitution of $26,562.87, to FEMA. Buckley is currently serving 12 years on state drug charges.

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 Department of Homeland Security, Office of the Inspector General, 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.