Jacksonville man sentenced to 21 months for fake disaster aid claims Feds: Lepoleon Spikes submitted fraudulent claims for Debby, Matthew, Irma
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville man was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison for providing false information to the Federal Emergency Management Agency in order to receive disaster assistance, the office of U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announced Wednesday.
Lepoleon Spikes, 47, was also ordered to pay more than $57,789 in restitution after pleading guilty to wire fraud .
According to federal prosecutors, Spikes submitted applications to receive disaster aid from FEMA after Tropical Storm Debby in 2012, Hurricane Matthew in 2016 and Hurricane Irma in 2017. He falsely claimed that his house in Jacksonville was damaged, causing him to relocate, prosecutors said.
The case is part of the Disaster Fraud Task Force, created in September 2017.
Copyright 2019 by WJXT News4Jax. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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