CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Allen H. Loughry II, 48, of Charleston, West Virginia, a former Justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, was sentenced to 24 months in prison by Senior United States District Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr., announced United States Attorney Mike Stuart.  Loughry was also ordered to pay restitution totaling $1,273 to the State of West Virginia and the Pound Civil Justice Institute.  After an eleven-day trial in October 2018, a federal jury found Loughry guilty of one count of mail fraud, seven counts of wire fraud, and two counts of lying to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Agents with the FBI and the West Virginia Commission on Special Investigations conducted the investigation.  

“Today is an important day.  It is important for the people of West Virginia, in restoring the confidence of our citizens in the West Virginia Supreme Court, and in reaffirming the rule of law and the administration of justice,” said United States Attorney Mike Stuart.  “Our system proved that it works.  Arguably more important than any other part of the criminal justice system, sentencing is a reflection of our values as a society. The goals of sentencing are inherently contradictory and always involve a balancing of competing goals. These three goals are deterrence, denunciation, and rehabilitation. I want to thank my prosecution team, defense counsel and the jury for their tireless but critical roles in ensuring a just and fair result.  I reiterate my amazing respect for the majesty of our system of justice – albeit imperfect it is the finest system known to mankind and the envy of the world.  The preservation of liberty is best maintained through the confidence of the people in our system of fair and equal justice.” 

Stuart continued, “I said it before and I will say it again, there’s no such thing as a little bit of public corruption. It is a cancer that erodes the public’s confidence in government and undermines the rule of law. Integrity and honesty need not be exceptions but, rather, should be the standard we expect from our public servants.  To quote Mr. Loughry, as stated in his book:  ‘It is essential that people have the absolute confidence in the integrity and impartiality of our system of justice.’ Today, with the sentence of Mr. Loughry, our system of justice took a big step in furthering the people’s confidence.”

"Public corruption is a betrayal of the public's sacred trust," said FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert Jones. "There is no level of acceptable corruption. The FBI will work tirelessly to make sure those in power positions uphold the law and are held to the highest standards."

Loughry’s convictions resulted from fraudulent activity while he was a sitting Justice on the Supreme Court. The mail fraud conviction stemmed from his defrauding the Pound Civil Justice Institute of approximately $400 in the summer of 2014, when he claimed mileage to attend a conference in Baltimore, Maryland, as if he had driven his own personal vehicle when in fact he drove a Supreme Court vehicle. The seven wire fraud convictions related to Loughry’s using a government fuel card to buy gasoline for travel that was not official business. Two of those wire fraud convictions, Counts 5 and 10 of the Second Superseding Indictment, involved purchases of gasoline by Loughry late at night on a holiday or weekend, not long after he had already filled up the Supreme Court’s vehicle with gasoline upon returning from a trip. The remaining five convictions for wire fraud involved purchases of gasoline with a government fuel card and travel by Loughry in a Supreme Court vehicle to attend book-signing events at The Greenbrier Resort, for the book Loughry authored in 2006 about public corruption in West Virginia.

Loughry’s two convictions for lying to the FBI resulted from false answers he gave during an interview on March 2, 2018, by a Special Agent of the FBI. During that interview, Loughry claimed he never used a state vehicle for personal use and that he did not know that a desk he had in his home was a “Cass Gilbert desk” or even a desk anyone had ever claimed to be a Cass Gilbert desk.

AUSAs Philip H. Wright and R. Gregory McVey handled the prosecution.

 

Follow us on Twitter: @SDWVNews and @USAttyStuart 

 

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New Indictment Adds Obstruction of Justice Charge

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- United States Attorney Mike Stuart announced today that the federal grand jury which returned the original indictment against West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals Justice Allen H. Loughry II last month has today returned a superseding indictment. Loughry, 47, of Charleston, West Virginia, was charged on June 19, 2018, in a 22-count Indictment that was unsealed today. The new indictment adds an obstruction of justice count, in addition to the existing wire and mail fraud, false statements, and witness tampering offenses.

The new count charges that between December 4, 2017, and May 24, 2018, Loughry knowingly and corruptly endeavored to influence, obstruct, and impede the due administration of justice—a pending federal grand jury investigation the existence of which Loughry was well aware, according to the superseding indictment. The superseding indictment goes on to explain that Loughry allegedly obstructed justice by, among other things, deflecting attention away from his own misconduct and blaming others for improperly using Supreme Court funds and property; creating a false narrative about when a Cass Gilbert desk was moved to his home and under whose direction; using invoices not related to the transfer of a leather couch and the Cass Gilbert desk to his home in 2013 to buttress the false narrative he created, and repeating the false narrative to a Special Agent of the FBI in an interview on March 2, 2018.

“Today, a federal grand jury returned a superseding indictment against West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals Justice Allen Loughry,” said United States Attorney Mike Stuart.  “The new indictment adds another very serious charge -- obstruction of justice -- which, in addition to the charges included in the original indictment, expose  Loughry to a possible sentence of 405 years in prison.  It’s very disappointing that a former Chief Justice of the highest court in the State of West Virginia would engage in such egregious conduct.  Obstruction of justice is one of the most serious of offenses and for that conduct to be conducted by a Supreme Court Justice is, frankly, just plain stupefying.”

The 23-count Indictment charges Loughry with sixteen counts of mail fraud (Counts 2, 3, 4-17), which carry a penalty of up to 20 years for each count; two counts of wire fraud (Counts 1 and 19), which carry a penalty of up to 20 years for each count; three counts of making false statements to a federal agent (Counts 21-23), which carry a penalty of up to 5 years for each count; one count of witness tampering (Count 18), which carries a penalty of up to 20 years; and the new charge in Count 20 for obstruction of justice, which carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison.  If convicted on all counts in the Indictment, Loughry faces a possible sentence of up to 405 years in prison, a fine of $5.75 million, and a term of supervised release of up to 3 years.

The superseding indictment can be found here.

Please note:  An Indictment is merely an allegation and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

 

Follow us on Twitter: @SDWVNews and @USAttyStuart 

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Supreme Court Justice Charged with Obstruction of Justice and other federal Crimes

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- United States Attorney Mike Stuart announced today that West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals Justice Allen H. Loughry II, 47, of Charleston, West Virginia, was charged by a federal grand jury in a 22-count Indictment that was unsealed today.   Loughry is a Justice on the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, who was elected in November 2012 and sworn in on January 1, 2013.  The 22-count Indictment charges Loughrywith numerous fraud, false statements, and witness tampering offenses.

“A federal grand jury has charged a Justice on the state’s highest court with numerous and serious federal crimes,” said United States Attorney Mike Stuart.  “This is a solemn day for all West Virginians.  On this day—West Virginia Day—the people of our great state deserve better.  They have worked too hard and too long to tolerate misconduct that strikes at the heart of the public’s trust by their elected officials.  I intend to do all that I can to ensure that our people have the honest government they deserve.” 

Loughry is accused of using a government vehicle and submitting mileage claims for reimbursement; using a government vehicle and credit card on personal trips; and unlawfully converting to his own use a historically significant piece of furniture – a Cass Gilbert desk.  Justice Loughry was also indicted for attempting to corruptly obstruct and influence testimonial evidence of a Supreme Court employee in an imminent grand jury investigation.

"Public corruption is a top investigative priority for the FBI," said Assistant Special Agent in Charge Nick Boshears. "It erodes public confidence and undermines the Rule of Law. We want the people we serve to know the FBI will hold those accountable who betray the public's trust."

This morning, at approximately 7:30 a.m., Justice Loughry was arrested at his home by the FBI and brought to the Robert C. Byrd Courthouse in Charleston, West Virginia for processing and to schedule arraignment.  The arrest of Justice Loughry was without incident and it is not expected he will be detained pending trial in this matter.

“For the past several weeks, public officials across West Virginia have been quick to condemn Justice Loughry, perhaps with the hope that the crisis in public confidence with the Supreme Court could be expediently resolved by lodging all culpability on just one person – Justice Loughry,” said United States Attorney Mike Stuart. “That may or may not, however, be the case.  Our work continues on many fronts, including additional areas of corruption.  I urge public officials and the public to respect this process and allow the process to play out.”

“I want to praise the hard and thorough work of several law enforcement partners, agencies and individuals,” said United States Attorney Mike Stuart. “The amazing work of the FBI, the West Virginia Legislative Commission on Special Investigations, the Internal Revenue Service—Criminal Investigation Division, and Assistant United States Attorneys Philip H. Wright, L. Anna Forbes, and Eric Bacaj.  Late nights, long weekends, and hours and hours of investigative work – the FBI, WV-CSI, and my prosecutors are to be strongly commended.”

The 22-count Indictment charges Loughry with sixteen counts of mail fraud (Counts 2, 3, 4-17), which carry a penalty of up to 20 years for each count; two counts of wire fraud (Counts 1 and 18), which carry a penalty of up to 20 years for each count; three counts of making false statements to a federal agent (Counts 19-21), which carry a penalty of up to 5 years for each count; and one count of witness tampering (Count 22), which carries a penalty of up to 20 years.  If convicted on all counts in the Indictment, Loughry faces a possible sentence of up to 395 years in prison, a fine of $5.5 million, and a term of supervised release of up to 3 years.

​A copy of the indictment can be found here.

Please note:  An Indictment is merely an allegation and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

 

Follow us on Twitter: @SDWVNews and @USAttyStuart 

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