A brazen scheme to rip off the federal crop insurance program has landed a Tennessee man behind bars for over 3 years.
David Garrett Manion, 61, of Lafayette, Tennessee, was sentenced yesterday to 3 years and 6 months in federal prison for defrauding the federal crop insurance program between 2016 and 2022.
The scheme was hatched while Manion was already facing charges for a previous conviction in 2016 for the same crime. As part of that case, Manion agreed to a five-year debarment from the federal crop insurance program administered by the United States Department of Agriculture Risk Management Agency.
But Manion’s family members didn’t get the message. While the previous case was being resolved, they applied for and received crop insurance for tobacco that was farmed by and belonged to Manion. The scheme netted Manion a cool $3.5 million in restitution, which he will have to pay back.
In addition to the prison sentence, Manion has also agreed to pay the Risk Management Agency nearly $5.5 million to resolve other outstanding issues. And let’s be clear: there’s no parole in the federal system, so Manion will have to serve every day of that sentence.
The case was investigated by the United States Department of Agriculture, Office of the Inspector General, the Department of Agriculture Risk Management Agency, Special Investigations, and the FBI Bowling Green Resident Agency. Assistant U.S. Attorney David Weiser prosecuted the case, bringing Manion to justice for his crimes.
The $3.5 million restitution order and the additional $5.5 million payment to resolve outstanding issues will bring some measure of closure to the victims of Manion’s scheme. But it’s a bleak reminder that crop insurance fraud is a serious crime with serious consequences.
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Key Facts
- State: Kentucky
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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