ROCHESTER, N.Y. — A Rochester man has been sentenced to four years and three months in prison after pleading guilty to multiple schemes that defrauded people of more than $2 million.
In addition, a judge has ordered Timothy Wadsworth, 35, to pay nearly $811,000 in restitution and ordered him to forfeit an additional nearly $811,000. He pleaded guilty in May to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering after an FBI investigation.
Investigators say Wadsworth conspired with others to fraudulently obtain money between March 2020 and September 2021. Here’s a breakdown of the schemes:
Credit card scheme
Prosecutors say Wadsworth took stolen credit card account numbers and processed unauthorized transactions, channeling funds to his bank accounts, then into Bitcoin via Coinbase, which he transferred to coconspirators.
Between March 10, 2020, and May 15, 2020, prosecutors say Wadsworth used a Stripe, Inc. account, which allows merchants to receive funds from consumers as payments for goods and services, and tried to process 310 payments over $1.6 million.
Of those attempted transactions, 116 were initially successful, totaling over $730,000. The funds were then moved from Stripe to Wadsworth’s HSBC and Evolve Federal Credit Union accounts, then to Coinbase and converted to Bitcoin, with several transfers exceeding $10,000, according to prosecutors.
Economic Injury Disaster Loan application
Prosecutors also say that, between May 13, 2020, and May 5, 2021, Wadsworth and others submitted nine false Economic Injury Disaster Loan applications to try and get money they weren’t entitled to. Three of the applications were approved, and prosecutors say Wadsworth was paid a total of $161,200.
Romance fraud scheme, unemployment benefits, and loans
Wadsworth also applied for six Payroll Protection Program loans totaling $91,219. Two of the loans were funded for $20,833 and $20,416. He also collected over $65,800 in unemployment benefits he wasn’t eligible for.
Prosecutors say Wadsworth also participated in a romance fraud scheme, defrauding one person out of $42,000, and six others out of $26,000.
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