ST. LOUIS (CN) - A phony who claimed to be a wounded veteran and took money for a phony charity was sentenced this week to a year in federal prison.
Matthew Buckingham, 41, of St. Louis County, pleaded guilty in August to one felony count of impersonating a federal agent.
Buckingham claimed that his charity, "Veteran Aid From All Foreign Wars," would hold a July 4 raffle with prizes of $3,000 for first, $2,000 for second and $1,000 for third.
He bought an ad on CraigsList and hired women to sell raffle tickets, claiming he was a wounded veteran of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
They sold tickets, but the raffle never happened.
Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster filed a civil lawsuit this month against Buckingham and his phony charity.
Buckingham was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge Henry Autrey.
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