Follow up: How to buy eggs for 7 cents in Malta and sell them for 5 cents in Sicily and still make a profit

The bus stopped here on April 9, 2009. It's a complicated scene but if you can understand how Milo was able to buy eggs for seven cents in Malta, sell them for five cents and still make a profit for the syndicate- of which everyone had a share, including Hungry Joe, then you will be able to follow this scheme.



This morning's edition of the SN-L has a follow-up. The guy got sentenced to 28 months in prison without parole. The court also ordered Feller to pay almost $740,000 in restitution to the Internal Revenue Service.

Feller will also be required to pay an as-yet-undetermined amount of restitution, not to exceed $3.9 million, to Yakima Products Inc.On Aug. 4, Feller pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and two counts of income tax evasion.

The scheme involved submitting fictitious invoices to defraud Yakima Products Inc. of approximately $4 million.

Yakima operates a luggage/bicycle rack manufacturing and distribution facility in Beaverton, Ore.

During the time of the conspiracies, Yakima also operated a watercraft (canoes, kayaks, etc.) manufacturing and distribution facility under the name Watermark Paddlesports Inc.

Watermark changed its name to Yakima in May 2005.

Feller was a transportation consultant and later the director of distribution and logistics for Yakima.

He was a contract employee who worked out of his Springfield residence. Feller was responsible for approving invoices submitted by the carriers.

Feller admitted that he created Cooper Enterprises, a fictitious company that Feller used to bill Yakima for freight that was purportedly hauled by Cooper Enterprises, but which in fact, was never hauled. Feller received approximately $3.8 million from Yakima, which he deposited in Cooper Enterprises bank accounts.

Feller was assisted by Christopher Levato, of Simpsonville, S.C. Levato represented himself as an agent or employee of Cooper Enterprises and would field questions from Yakima employees regarding the Cooper Enterprises invoices.

Levato received a portion of the scheme proceeds. Levato also pleaded guilty and was sentenced for his role in December 2010.

Feller also received more than $110,000 from fictitious invoices that he approved, and which were paid by Yakima, for freight that was purportedly hauled by Southern Logistics, but in fact was never hauled.

In addition, Feller submitted false inflated invoices under the name of United Transport, to Yakima for payment. Once payment was sent to United Transport, the funds were used to pay legitimate freight charges, and the inflated additional amount was split between Feller and another co-conspirator.

Feller's role in all schemes was to approve the invoices for payment and submit them to Yakima.

Yakima's accounting department relied on Feller's approval of the invoices as the basis for payment.

During the 2004 and 2005 calendar years, Feller had taxable income from the false invoicing schemes in the amount of $1 million and $765,000.

Based on the taxable income figures, Feller had an income tax due of $300,000 in 2004 and $250,000 in 2005.

Feller attempted to evade and defeat the income tax due by failing to file a 2004 or 2005 income tax return, by failing to pay the IRS the income tax owed, and by concealing and attempting to conceal his true and correct income.

Feller agreed that the total amount of unpaid taxes due and owed to the Internal Revenue Service for tax years 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005 is $738,941.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Robyn L. McKee. It was investigated by IRS Criminal Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.