Contractor Charged with Defrauding City of Clarksville of Nearly $447,000

May 4, 2010 - INDIANAPOLIS—Gary V. Crowe, Sr., 71, Clarksville, Ind., was charged today with mail fraud for allegedly defrauding the City of Clarksville of nearly $447,000. The fraud allegedly arose from Crowe’s fraudulent sale of gasoline and diesel fuel to the City of Clarksville. This case was the result of an investigation by the Indiana State Board of Accounts, the Indiana State Police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Crowe owned and operated a business known as the Jubilee Oil Company (“Jubilee Oil’). Between 2000 and 2006, Jubilee Oil allegedly contracted to supply motor fuel to Clarksville. Under the contract, Clarksville purportedly agreed to pay Jubilee Oil at the rate of 16 cents per gallon more than the actual cost of the fuel delivered to Clarksville. The contract allegedly required Jubilee Oil to provide Clarksville with a copy of its supplier’s invoice as well as Jubilee Oil’s delivery tickets or invoices to allow Clarksville to determine that it was being properly charged for the fuel.

Jubilee Oil actually purchased the fuel it supplied to Clarksville from Supreme Oil Company, Inc. (“Supreme Oil”), in New Albany, Indiana. Crowe would allegedly telephone Supreme Oil and place an order for a fuel delivery. Crowe would allegedly provide the date of delivery, the place of delivery, the type of fuel, and the amount of fuel required. Supreme Oil would then dispatch a tanker truck containing the fuel (diesel or gasoline) for delivery to various locations, including the police department, the street department, the parks department, and the Wooded View Golf Course.

Between February 11, 2003 and April 16, 2007, Crowe allegedly devised and executed a scheme or artifice to defraud Clarksville by fraudulently overcharging Clarksville for the amount and cost of the fuel actually delivered by Supreme Oil. During this period, nearly 350 supplier invoices were allegedly altered by Crowe to increase the price per gallon between .03 and .45 cents per gallon. Additionally, Crowe allegedly altered other supplier invoices to falsely increase the amount of fuel provided from 10 to 220 gallons. As a result of the scheme, Clarksville allegedly overpaid Crowe and Jubilee Oil approximately $446,643.07.

According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven D. DeBrota, who is prosecuting the case for the government, the alleged fraud was discovered through audits by the Indiana State Board of Accounts. The statutory penalty for this offense includes a period of imprisonment of up to 20 years, followed by a maximum five years supervised release and a maximum fine of $250,000.

An information is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.