Sour Lake couple convicted of hurricane fraud

United States Attorney John L. Ratcliffe announced last week that a Sour Lake couple has been convicted of hurricane related fraud in the Eastern District of Texas.

Marianna Miller, 47, and Jason Cory Fregia, 37, both of Sour Lake, were found guilty by a jury today after a two-day trial before United States District Judge Ron Clark. Miller was convicted on three counts of making false statements and Fregia was convicted of one count of making a false statement.

According to information presented in court, Miller and Fregia claimed they owned property in Hardin County that was damaged by Hurricane Rita in September 2005. They applied for a disaster relief loan with the Small Business Administration and fraudulently obtained an SBA disaster assistance loan in the mount of $25,800.00 for property they did not own.

Miller and Fregia face up to five years in federal prison and a $250,000.00 fine for each violation.