THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, December 13, 1994 TAG: 9412130277
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE LENGTH: Short : 33 lines
A man who operated the Shenandoah County Landfill was charged Monday with diverting $643,962 in county funds to his personal bank account after setting up a fake contracting company.
A federal grand jury returned a 116-count indictment charging Richard Allen Chrisman, 42, of Fort Valley, with mail fraud and money laundering.
Chrisman is charged with setting up a dummy company he called Diesel Specialties and billed the county for equipment and materials never delivered to the landfill, according to a statement from U.S. Attorney Robert Crouch and Shenandoah County Commonwealth's Attorney William H. Logan.
From June 9, 1987, through Sept. 1, 1994, the county's payments for the items went to a bank account created by Chrisman in the name of Diesel Specialties and was then funneled into Chrisman's personal account, the indictment alleges.
If Chrisman is found guilty, his sentence will be determined by federal guidelines that take into account such things as the amount of money that was taken and whether the defendant was acting in a position of trust, the prosecutors said.
KEYWORDS: MAIL FRAUD MONEY LAUNDERING by CNB