Judge Sentences Former V.I. Army National Guard Major To Prison For Wire Fraud

ST. CROIX — District Court Judge Curtis V. Gomez on November 12, 2015 sentenced Sherrymae Morales, 54, of St. Croix, to 12 months and one day in prison, and three years of supervised release, United States Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe announced. Judge Gomez also ordered Morales to serve 200 hours of community service, repay $45,426 in restitution to the Virgin Islands National Guard, and pay a special assessment of $2,100.

On July 1, 2015, after a three-day trial in District Court on St. Croix, the jury found Morales guilty of 21 counts of wire fraud. According to evidence presented at trial, from 2010 until 2011, Morales was employed as a full-time employee with the Virgin Islands National Guard (VING) on St. Croix. At the same time she was employed as a full-time VING employee, Morales also held a full-time contract position with the Military Personnel Services Corporation (MPSC), which provides employee support services to members of the VING. Evidence presented at trial demonstrated that Morales submitted time sheets to both the MPSC and VING for the same 40-hour work weeks over 14 months.

This case was investigated by the United States Army Criminal Investigation Command-Major Procurement Fraud Unit, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and the Department of Homeland Security Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Everard E. Potter.