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Arson, Witness Tampering Land Man in Prison
BECKLEY, W.Va. – Former insurance agent Jimmie Arnold Harper, Jr., 36, of Hurricane, has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison for his role in a 2015 arson and a witness tampering crime in 2016.
Harper pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting arson and conspiracy to tamper with a witness. He was ordered to pay over $320,000 in restitution and serve seven consecutive years for the arson crime and two consecutive years for the witness tampering crime.
The charges stem from an incident on September 14, 2015, when Harper arranged for a fire to be set at his own residence at 7 Stonegate Drive in Scott Depot. The Teays Valley Fire Department responded to the scene, and one firefighter fell through the floor in the kitchen and sustained minor burns to his lower extremities.
Harper called in a fire claim to his insurance company, Auto Club Insurance Association, for $624,200 in structural damage and $468,150 in personal property loss. Unbeknownst to Harper, one of the firefighters had been injured in the blaze.
On January 24, 2016, Harper met with witnesses in an unrelated case in an attempt to influence their testimony before a federal grand jury. The meeting took place in Harper’s vehicle in the parking lot of a convenience store in MacArthur in Raleigh County. During the meeting, Harper emphasized that the kidnapping charges against Seth T. Radcliffe needed to go away because of the severe penalties.
The investigation into Harper’s crimes was conducted by the West Virginia State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation, the West Virginia State Fire Marshal’s Office, the West Virginia Office of the Insurance Commissioner, the FBI, and the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office.
Key Facts
- State: West Virginia
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime|White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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