One Way to Finance Retirement
Unless, of course, you get caught.
Seems as if a recently-retired Army Master Sergeant decided his retired pay would be less than he and his wife desired. So starting in 2004, for about 6 years he and his wife took measures to ensure a better retirement.
Unfortunately, those measures weren’t legal. He was making illicit requisitions, ripping off the incoming property, and selling it. She was helping him launder the money.
They got caught. And about three weeks ago they pleaded guilty in Federal criminal court.
He got 40 months in prison, plus was required to forfeit $861,000 and four properties. She pleaded guilty to money laundering, but only got 5 years probation.
I kinda wish James H. “Bigamist” Johnson III had had the same judge and jury.
Category: Legal, Military issues, Shitbags
Man, I just do NOT get folks who think that they can steal from the military and get away with it.
Sure, an MRE or such isn’t going to be missed, but with the amount of tracking and paperwork accounting that is in place, especially considering how there’s so much digital backup for it, it’s a fool’s errand to think you’ll get away with it.
There is a giant disparity in the Army with things like this, and enlisted tend to get Dick slapped more. There is also a disparity in the force, NG and Reserve Soldiers often have to deal with more stress than the AC folks, what with civilian careers we leave behind. Active folks still hate us, the active CA folks as of yesterday, have made it twice as hard for reservists to come on active duty. We do the same job, and deploy more than they do, and are treated like shit by them.
Didn’t anyone notice that he had all these properties? Sure I know a Master Sergeant makes decent money but who did not notice that he had all these properties that even a high priced attoney might envy.
I have to disagree with you Lucky. I’m pretty sure the AC folks tend to deploy more than Reservists. For a while there our OPTEMPO was 12 months gone, 12 months back, rinse and repeat. As far as being harder to go from Reserves to Active, I’d be willing to bet that the fact that the Army is showing 80,000 folks to the door has something to do with that. Then again with whatever your MOS is and me seeing things from just my perspective I could be wrong.
Twist – Lucky may well have a point. Until recently, a huge fraction (>90%, if I recall correctly) of the Army’s CA assets were in the Reserve components. That career field in the Reserves did indeed get “rode hard and put away wet”. If I recall correctly, I knew folks in 2004 who were on their 2nd deployment.
Lucky – not sure the comparison with enlisted getting a raw deal is valid here. This wasn’t a courts-martial. The couple was tried in Federal criminal court after this tool retired from the Army.
Hondo-I was having a brainfart and lack of coffee is affecting my reading comprehension skills this morning. In my defense I did say that given what Lucky’s MOS is that I could be wrong. Turns out it looks like I was.
I just wished we didn’t have to pay a large amount for each service and combat stripe when each time you have to re-buy the whole sleeve. I am getting tired spending around thirty bucks. Pretty soon I will need assistance to bend my elbows.
Ahhhhh, thanks Hondo, I didn’t see the Federal Court part! Also, at BNCOC, our end of course critiques were done by a SWCS E-8 who showed pretty much nothing but contempt for reserve CA, and said that active CA was soooo much better… They do not deploy HALF as much as we do! But they are better than us, because they do it full time? Thats bunk, especially since they haven’t deployed in strength!
I’m happy with my E7 retirement pay. Nothing is worth your personal integrity, unless you have none.