Royce Gillham, a Florida man and general manager of a biofuel company in Fort Pierce, has pleaded guilty to participating in a scheme that generated over $7 million in fraudulent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) renewable fuel credits and sought more than $6 million in fraudulent tax credits related to biodiesel production.
According to court documents, Gillham’s company claimed to produce biodiesel from various feedstocks and reported its production volumes to both the IRS and EPA. Gillham and his employer significantly inflated these production figures to collect additional renewable fuel credits. When auditors requested further details, Gillham and his co-conspirators allegedly provided false information about the company’s production and customer base.
Gillham pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and filing false claims. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy count. A sentencing date has not been set, and the plea agreement’s acceptance will depend on the federal district court judge’s review of U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
The case was investigated by the EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division (EPA-CID) and the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Miami field office. Senior Trial Attorney Adam Cullman from the Justice Department’s Environmental Crimes Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Funk for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.