Rodney Blake, 39, of Baltimore, Maryland, and Robert Morrisey, 32, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, were sentenced for their roles in a conspiracy to commit bank fraud and multiple counts of possessing forged securities. U.S. District Judge Marilyn J. Horan sentenced Blake to 146 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release. Morrisey was sentenced to 85 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.
Both men were also ordered to pay restitution of $329,632.96 to the victims, which included approximately 25 Pittsburgh-area businesses and organizations. The fraud scheme involved stealing business checks from the mail and forging them for large sums of money. These phony checks were made payable to individuals, many of whom were homeless or struggling with addiction, and recruited to cash the checks in exchange for a small percentage of the proceeds.
Blake and Morrisey worked with co-conspirators Steven Baldwin and Tariiq Simmons, who were also involved in executing the scheme. Baldwin and Simmons were sentenced to 46 months in prison each, followed by five years of supervised release. The defendants’ actions resulted in significant financial harm to local businesses and individuals.
