Okla. Couple Pleads Guilty in Charity Fraud Case

An Oklahoma man is facing 10 years in prison, and his wife will serve a three-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to five counts of violating the Oklahoma Solicitation of Charitable Contributions Act, Attorney General Drew Edmondson announced.

Gregory Sean Anderson, 38, and his wife, Sherri Ann Anderson, 33, were charged April 26 in Oklahoma County District Court after investigators found the Andersons made as many as 4,600 successful, but fraudulent, solicitations to Oklahoma businesses on behalf of charities with which the couple was not affiliated.

Investigators for the attorney general’s office believe the pair may have netted more than $230,000 from their scheme between January and October 2005.

Gregory Anderson was ordered to serve 10 years imprisonment. Sherri Anderson was ordered to serve a three-year sentence and two additional years of probation. The pair will also pay court costs and a victims compensation assessment.

“Little by little, this couple used the generosity of others to build up their own bank accounts,” Edmondson said. “Even though this is white collar crime, it is a crime that took money away from legitimate charitable groups. I am pleased with the resolution of this case. The jail time the Andersons will serve is appropriate for the crimes they committed.”

Edmondson said the charities the Andersons used in their bogus solicitations included the Oklahoma Veterans Association, the Blind Children’s Learning Center, the Oklahoma University Youth Center, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Norman University Lion’s Club, the Lion’s Club and the OKC Beep Ball Bombers.

The case was prosecuted by the attorney general’s office after being referred by the Oklahoma City Economic Crimes and Identity Theft Task Force. The Task Force is made up of representatives from the Oklahoma City Police Department, the Internal Revenue Service, the FBI, the United States Postal Service and the Secret Service.

Source: Oklahoma AG’s Office