BANGOR, Maine — A federal judge Wednesday sentenced a Kennebec County man he called a “serial fraudster” to 14 months in federal prison for scamming victims in Maine, Colorado and Massachusetts out of nearly $27,000.
Ervin Morrison III, 24, whose address is listed as Gardiner, Chelsea and Winslow in court documents, also was sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $26,900 to five victims.
Under the federal sentencing guidelines, Morrison faced between eight and 14 months in prison.
Morrison pleaded guilty last month to five counts of wire fraud. By pleading guilty, he admitted that between June 2014 and July 2015, he responded to ads on Craigslist for firewood, wood pellets, logging, delivery of a vehicle and home repairs. Morrison negotiated substantial down payments but never delivered the goods or services, according to court documents.
In addition, Morrison still faces other charges in state court for allegedly bilking thousands more from other victims.
Morrison did not spend the money on utilities, restitution owed for previous and similar crimes, or to pay child support for his now 3-year-old son, U.S. District Judge John Woodcock said just before imposing the sentence. Instead, Morrison spent the money on a $25,000 Harley-Davidson motorcycle and more than $9,000 on accessories for it.
“Your life has been a series of frauds ever since you were in your mid-teens,” the judge said of Morrison’s prior criminal history that began when he was 16 years old. “I don’t believe that you got in over your head in your business, but that you set out to cheat your victims. I view you as a serial fraudster.”
Morrison apologized to his victims Wednesday at the sentencing hearing and was emotional as he talked about his parents, girlfriend and young son. The defendant said he wants to repay the victims once he’s released from prison.
“You stand in front of me and weep as you talk about your love for your son, but the surest way to show love for your son is to pay child support,” Woodcock told Morrison. “I consider your tears to be crocodile tears. You spent $34,000 of other people’s money on yourself [for the Harley-Davidson] and not on your son.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew McCormack recommend the judge impose a sentence at the high end of the guideline range. Federal Public Defense Attorney James Nixon urged Woodcock to impose a lesser sentence.
Morrison asked the judge to impose a sentence of a few months so he could attend the University of Maine next semester and study forestry.
Nixon told the judge that, without consulting him, Morrison had written letters apologizing to his victims and the police department that had investigated his crimes.
Morrison also is scheduled to appear Thursday at the Cumberland County Courthouse to face charges that he perpetrated similar theft and fraud in three Maine counties, including bilking a Brunswick business out of $86,000.
He was arrested in January in Lisbon and charged in state courts with multiple counts of theft and motor vehicle violations stemming from incidents investigated by police agencies in Maine and Massachusetts. Morrison has been in federal custody since Aug. 30 and that time will count toward the sentence imposed Wednesday.
The state court judge on Thursday could order Morrison to serve his sentence on those charges at the same time that he serves the sentence on the federal charges, or, could order Morrison to serve the additional time after he completes his federal incarceration.
BDN writer Beth Brogan contributed to this report.