Ohio Couple Sentenced to Prison for Arson in Profit Scheme to Fraudulently Collect Millions in Insurance Payouts (DOJ)

AKRON, Ohio - A husband and wife from Willoughby Hills, Ohio, have been sentenced for devising a scheme to collect more than $2 million dollars in insurance money by conspiring to set insured houses on fire.

Lonnie White, 48, was sentenced to 53 months (4 years, 4 months) in prison by Chief U.S. District Judge Sara Lioi after pleading guilty in August to the following charges as outlined in the indictment:

• Conspiracy to Commit Mail and Wire Fraud
• Conspiracy to Commit Money Laundering Offenses
• Conspiracy to use Fire in Commission of a Felony

He was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $2,375,861 in restitution. Chief Judge Lioi imposed the sentence Jan. 23.

White's spouse, Lisa Ogletree, 48, was sentenced to five years of probation and 810 days of location-monitored home confinement after she pleaded guilty last August to Conspiracy to Commit Mail and Wire Fraud. Chief Judge Lioi imposed the sentence Jan. 28.

"It's traumatic for people to see a house in their neighborhood go up in flames, and these defendants shamelessly utilized devastating fires just to line their pockets with money," said United States Attorney David M. Toepfer for the Northern District of Ohio. "Additionally, insurance companies paid out millions in claims-in good faith-only to learn that they were deceived by these fraudsters. We commend the outstanding efforts of the ATF agents on the case and their regional partners who spent countless hours connecting the dots which eventually led to justice being served."

According to the indictment, White and Ogletree, either personally or through others, bought houses on the east side of Cleveland, transferred the properties to nominal owners with fake renters, insured the property for hundreds of thousands of dollars, arranged to set the house on fire, and submitted fraudulent insurance claims on the destroyed property. White arranged to intentionally set these houses ablaze to make them appear as if the fires were accidental.

After receiving the insurance payments for the fire damage, nominal owners distributed the funds to White and Ogletree, who then transferred the money to other bank accounts for their own benefit and to further their scheme. According to court filings, the scheme involved at least six fires and more than $2.3 million in fraudulent claims from 2013 to 2019.

The investigation leading to the indictment was conducted by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) Cleveland Field Office.

The prosecution was led by Assistant United States Attorneys Adam J. Joines and Brian M. McDonough for the Northern District of Ohio.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Ohio would like to acknowledge and thank the Cleveland Fire Investigation Unit; the Cuyahoga County Fusion Center; the Ohio State Fire Marshal; Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations; the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Office of the Inspector General for their assistance with this case.

ATF is the federal agency with jurisdiction for investigating fires and crimes of arson. Anyone who has information about an incidence of arson should contact ATF at 1-888-ATF-TIPS (888-283- 8477). Individuals may also email [email protected], or contact ATF through its website at www.atf.gov/contact/atf-tipsLinks to other government and non-government sites will typically appear with the "external link" icon to indicate that you are leaving the Department of Justice website when you click the link..