Timothy Wadsworth, 35, of Rochester, New York, pleaded guilty on May 7 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering before U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr., according to an announcement by U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
Wadsworth admitted that between March 2020 and September 2021 he worked with others to obtain money through fraudulent means. He processed unauthorized credit card transactions using account numbers provided by coconspirators, transferred the funds into his own bank accounts, moved some of the proceeds into a Coinbase account to purchase Bitcoin, and then sent the cryptocurrency to other conspirators. During this period, Wadsworth attempted more than $1.6 million in fraudulent credit card payments through Stripe Inc., with over $730,000 initially processed successfully without authorization from account holders.
Once these payments were received in his Stripe account, Wadsworth transferred them into personal bank accounts at HSBC and Evolve Federal Credit Union before moving funds into Coinbase for further transfers exceeding $10,000 each on several occasions. In addition to credit card fraud schemes, Wadsworth submitted nine false Economic Injury Disaster Loan applications between May 2020 and May 2021; three were approved for a total payout of $161,200 based on misrepresented business information. He also applied for six Payroll Protection Program loans totaling over $91,000—two were funded for more than $41,000 combined—again using false information about the businesses involved.
Wadsworth unlawfully received nearly $66,000 in unemployment benefits from New York State as well as other states during a time when he was not eligible for such assistance. He also participated in a romance scam targeting a recently widowed victim who wired him $42,000 after being deceived online by someone posing as an oil rig worker needing travel expenses.
In total—including additional victims defrauded out of approximately $26,000—Wadsworth’s actions resulted in actual or intended losses estimated at more than $2 million.
On April 7 this year the Department of Justice announced creation of its National Fraud Enforcement Division dedicated to investigating misuse or theft of taxpayer dollars; these efforts support President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance aimed at reducing waste within federal benefit programs.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Katelyn M. Hartford following investigations led by multiple agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation units among others.
Sentencing is scheduled for September 10 before Judge Geraci.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York prosecutes federal criminal violations—including those related to financial crimes—and handles civil cases on behalf of the government while collecting federal debts; it operates offices in Buffalo and Rochester covering seventeen counties across western New York according to the official website.
