Florida electrical contractor, wife guilty in Wilma fraud
Mar 7, 2012
The following article was published in the Bradenton Herald on March 7, 2012:
Florida electrical contractor, wife guilty in Wilma fraud
By The Associated Press
A Florida electrical contractor and his wife have been convicted of several federal charges involving kickbacks for Hurricane Wilma-related repairs.
Jeffrey and Angela Aunspaugh each face a maximum of 30 years in prison when they are sentenced in June. The Port St. Lucie couple was convicted Tuesday of mail fraud, money laundering and other charges by a jury in Fort Pierce.
Trial testimony shows the couple obtained more than $1 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency-related subcontracts in 2005 from a utility where their brother-in-law was general manager.
Prosecutors said the couple used complex bank withdrawals to hide the payment of $200,000 in kickbacks for the subcontracts to their relative, Christopher Hale.
Hale previously pleaded guilty to receiving kickbacks and is also set for sentencing in June.