BILLINGS — The U.S. Attorney’s Office recently recovered approximately $450,000 from a Missoula man who defrauded his victims out of almost $1 million by fraudulently inducing them to invest in his transportation and logistics companies, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme has announced.
The defendant, Jason L. Matheny, was convicted of wire fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1343 on November 22, 2019.
The court sentenced him to five years of probation, subject to several conditions, and ordered him to pay $994,521.16 in restitution to his victims, according to a news release.
Matheny sold a commercial property in Missoula in late 2024 and, because of its restitution lien, the government secured $448,965.36 to be paid to his victims.
“The collection of restitution for victims of fraud is an essential part of the criminal justice system and a priority for the Department of Justice. Collection from convicted felons can be exceedingly difficult because money is often spent, invested, and moved around. Through the dedication and hard work of the Financial Litigation Program, the U.S. Attorney’s Office was able to execute against Mr. Matheny’s business property. This allowed the proceeds of that sale to be routed to Mr. Matheny’s victims rather than to him.” U.S. Attorney Alme said.
U.S. Probation requested a summons in September of 2024 for revocation of Matheny’s term of probation, alleging he had violated the terms of his sentence by failing to provide requested financial information.
Matheny admitted the violation in November 2024 and the Court extended his probation for an additional year.
