ROCKPORT, Maine — A local lawyer who concocted an elaborate scheme to bilk his company of more than $5 million will be going to prison for nearly six years.
Jason T. Throne was sentenced Thursday in U.S. District Court in Denver to 71 months for one count of mail fraud and one count of filing a false tax return. Throne will be placed on supervised release for three years after being released from prison and was ordered to make restitution of $5,186,491 to Hunter Douglas Inc.
Federal Judge Christine Arguelo imposed the sentence despite the recommendation by Throne’s attorney, John Schlie, for a sentence of no more than 40 months. The defense attorney argued in paperwork filed with the court that his client had suffered by his family and friends learning of his criminal actions.
Throne had been unable to find work for nine months before accepting a job as an associate in the flooring department of The Home Depot, his attorney stated.
He and his wife own a home in Rockport assessed at nearly $2 million.
Hunter Douglas had won a civil lawsuit against Throne in December 2014.
That judgment called for the Thrones to sell their home on Pandion Lane in Rockport, 42 acres of undeveloped land on Barnestown Road in Camden, and land in Colorado with the proceeds to be given to Hunter Douglas within five days of the sale.
Throne was Hunter Douglas’ senior patent lawyer for more than 20 years. The lawsuit claims that beginning in 1999, Throne and his wife created a company called Patent Services Group based in Rockport. Throne then had that firm bill Hunter Douglas for patent search services that were never performed, according to the lawsuit.
Between 2000 and 2014, Patent Services Group billed Hunter Douglas $30,000 to $40,000 on a monthly basis, according to the suit. While Throne was authorized to hire outside firms and spend money for such work, Hunter Douglas said it prohibits salaried employees such as Throne from work that could create a conflict of interest.
The lawsuit alleges that Throne would fax invoices to Hunter Douglas from Patent Services Group to give the bills an air of legitimacy, although Throne’s name was not present on any billing documents. He also rented a post office box in Colorado where payments were to be sent. He then traveled from Maine to Colorado to pick up the checks.
A patent engineer at Hunter Douglas questioned Throne in November 2013 about the “astronomical” charges from Patent Services Group, the civil lawsuit suit stated. The engineer said she had never heard of the company, but Throne assured her it was a company he regularly used.
The company fired Throne in June 2014 for cause, according to the lawsuit.
The criminal charges were filed by the government in February 2016, and Throne pleaded guilty in April.
Hunter Douglas produces window treatments and architectural products such as dropped ceilings, according to its website.
The Thrones also were involved in a civil court dispute in Maine in 2013 over whether their neighbors could cut the tops of some trees on the Thrones’ property to preserve a view of the ocean. The parties eventually reached an agreement to allow for trees to be trimmed.