Rochester man pleads guilty for conspiring to defraud victims, including taxpayers, of more than $2,000,000 and money laundering — Western District of New York, May 7, 2026

Summary

A press release in which U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced that Timothy Wadsworth, 35, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr. to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. According to the release, between March 10, 2020 and May 15, 2020 Wadsworth used a Stripe, Inc. account to attempt 310 payments totaling $1,673,578 with credit card account numbers obtained from coconspirators, 116 of which were initially successful for $730,728.22, and converted proceeds to Bitcoin. It states that he and others submitted nine false Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) applications, three of which were approved for a total of $161,200, and that he applied for six Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loans totaling $91,219 in 2021. Sentencing is scheduled for September 10, 2026, before Judge Geraci.

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ROCHESTER, N.Y.-U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo announced today that Timothy Wadsworth, 35, of Rochester, NY, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci, Jr. to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, which carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Between March 2020, and September 2021, Wadsworth conspired with others to fraudulently obtain money. To execute the scheme, he obtained credit card account numbers from coconspirators and processed unauthorized credit card transactions from those accounts, transferring the money to his bank accounts, transferring a portion of the money to his Coinbase account to purchase Bitcoin, and transferring Bitcoin to his coconspirators. Between March 10, 2020, and May 15, 2020, Wadsworth, using a Stripe, Inc. account, which allows merchants to receive funds from consumers as payments for goods and services, attempted to process 310 payments totaling $1,673,578. Of the 310 attempted transactions, 116 were initially successful totaling $730,728.22. These transactions were fraudulent. The credit card account holders did not authorize the transactions, and their account information was used to make the payments without authorization.

Once credit card payments were successfully processed, Wadsworth transferred the funds from his Stripe account to bank accounts he owned with HSBC and Evolve Federal Credit Union. He then transferred funds from those bank accounts to his Coinbase account, purchased Bitcoin with the money, and transferred the Bitcoin to various external addresses. These transactions were often in excess of $10,000 each. For example, between April 22 and April 28, 2020, Wadsworth transferred fraudulently obtained proceeds from his Stripe account to his HSBC account on three separate occasions, in the amounts of $49,419.99, $45,501.85, and $53,496.75.

In addition, between May 13, 2020, through May 5, 2021, Wadsworth and others submitted nine false Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) applications in an attempt to obtain money they were not entitled to. The applications contained misrepresentations about the businesses’ revenue and operation, which was material in assessing the businesses’ eligibility for the EIDL funds. Three of the EIDL applications were approved, and a total of $161,200 was paid to Wadsworth’s bank accounts as a result of the fraud. Between March 7 and April 26, 2021, Wadsworth applied for six Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loans totaling $91,219. Two of the loans were funded for $20,833 and $20,416, respectively, which was paid to Wadsworth’s bank account. Once again, the applications contained misrepresentations about the businesses they were submitted for.

From May 2020 through September 2021, Wadsworth fraudulently received approximately $65,896 in unemployment benefits from New York State, the State of Washington, and the Department of Labor. He was not eligible to receive any unemployment funds from any source during that time.

Wadsworth also participated in a romance fraud scheme in 2020. The victim, recently widowed, met an individual on Facebook that represented himself as an oil rig worker, and requested $42,000 from her to pay for travel expenses to return to the United States. The victim was directed to wire the money to Wadsworth’s bank account, which she did on March 20, 2020.

Wadsworth also defrauded six other victims out of $26,000 as a result of his schemes.

Wadsworth’s actions, including the credit card fraud, the PPP and EIDL fraud, the unemployment fraud, and the other frauds, resulted in actual and intended losses of approximately $2,059,893.00.

On April 7, 2026, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division. The core mission of the Fraud Division is to zealously investigate and prosecute those who steal or fraudulently misuse taxpayer dollars. Department of Justice efforts to combat fraud support President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Katelyn M. Hartford. The plea is the result of an investigation by Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Philip Tejera, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent-in-Charge Harry T. Chavis, Jr., New York Field Office, the New York State Department of Financial Services, under the direction of Acting Superintendent Kaitlin Asrow, and the New York State Department of Labor, under the direction of Commissioner Roberta Reardon.

Sentencing is scheduled for September 10, 2026, before Judge Geraci.

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