⏱ 3 min read
Donald Smith, 75, of Pittsburgh, is staring down a long stretch after a federal jury slammed him with guilty verdicts yesterday. The old man wasn’t just scamming any chumps – he was ripping off the U.S. military, pocketing over a million bucks meant for gear headed to the front lines. The scheme ran from 2019 to 2023, and Smith didn’t even bother paying taxes on the stolen money.
Prosecutors painted a clear picture: Smith’s company, a defense contractor, delivered garbage instead of the military-grade equipment the Defense Logistics Agency paid for. While soldiers were relying on his promises, Smith was allegedly busy lining his own pockets. After a five-day trial, the jury took just two hours to deliver the guilty verdict before Judge J. Nicholas Ranjan.
Smith was convicted on 13 counts: eight wire fraud charges and five for failing to file corporate tax returns. Each wire fraud count carries a potential 20-year sentence and a fine of $250,000 or twice the amount defrauded – whichever is higher. Add to that a year per tax evasion charge, and another $100,000 fine per count. Sentencing hasn’t been scheduled yet, but this old man isn’t likely to see freedom anytime soon.
The bust was a coordinated effort by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), IRS-Criminal Investigation, and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS). Assistant U.S. Attorneys William Guappone and Barbara K. Doolittle led the prosecution, bringing Smith’s grift to an end.
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📋 Key Facts
- Crime: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Defendant: financial crimes
- Location: US
- Source: U.S. Department of Justice
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