LOS ANGELES (CN) - A man who wanted a new garage door for his house pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud and tax charges after bilking hardware suppliers of $285,000 worth of material by posing as a Paramount Pictures "coordinator" who could get their products placed into a movie.
Andy James, 39, of Henderson, Nev., pleaded guilty to wire fraud in February and pleaded guilty Tuesday to three tax counts, federal prosecutors said.
Posing as "Carson Rogan," an employee of "Paramount Public Relations," James sent hundreds of fraudulent emails to hardware suppliers, claiming he could get their stuff placed in a movie called "The World Is My Stage." To do this, he created and registered the Internet domain name Paramountpublicrelations.com.
The U.S. Attorney's Office says James bilked suppliers of at least $285,000 worth of material, and that he did it while free on bond in a federal tax case out of Spokane.
James faces up to 20 years for wire fraud and 15 years for the tax charges.
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Top 8 today May 11, 2023