Long Island Duo Ripped Off Canadian Company for $8.2M in COVID-19 Mask Scam

Long Island duo Jonathan Cannon, 58, and Julie Dotton, 51, are facing serious charges after allegedly ripping off a Canadian company for $8.2 million in a COVID-19 mask scam.

According to a criminal complaint unsealed earlier today at the federal courthouse in Central Islip, Cannon and Dotton used a false pretense to sell personal protective equipment (PPE) to a Canadian company that was an official provider of PPE to two Canadian provinces during the pandemic.

The complaint alleges that Dotton entered into a contract with the company to sell approximately 12 million face masks for $8.2 million, using a nominal entity she controlled. However, rather than using the funds to procure the PPE as promised, Cannon and Dotton caused the company to wire the payment to a purported third-party escrow agent’s bank account.

Instead of using the funds as intended, the pair caused the escrow agent to transfer the funds to a bank account controlled by Cannon, who then disbursed the funds to various third parties for their own benefit. After failing to deliver the PPE, Cannon and Dotton strung the company along with excuses for months, according to the complaint.

“As alleged in the complaint, the defendants sought to take advantage of a provider’s need for life-saving personal protective equipment through a fraudulent scheme that was designed in reality to line their own pockets,” stated United States Attorney Breon Peace. “This Office will continue to work diligently to ensure that fraudsters who sought to capitalize on the worldwide pandemic will be brought to justice. There is no free pass for COVID-19 fraud.”

Breon Peace, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and James Smith, Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office, announced the arrests and charges. Cannon was arrested this morning at his home on Long Island and arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge Steven L. Tiscione, who released the defendant on a $500,000 bond. Dotton was arrested this morning in Buffalo and will make her initial appearance this afternoon in federal court in the Western District of New York.

The pair faces a charge of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. However, it’s worth noting that the charge is an allegation, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Business and Securities Fraud Section, with Assistant United States Attorneys Drew G. Rolle, John O. Enright, and Adam Toporovsky in charge of the prosecution. Paralegal Specialist Peyton Jefferson is also assisting with the case.

Cannon and Dotton will both face a tough road ahead as the authorities work to bring them to justice for their alleged crimes.