A New Jersey man who conspired with his then-girlfriend to cook up a feel-good story about a helpful homeless man and then used the lie to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations online has been sentenced to more than two years in federal prison.
Mark D'Amico received a 27-month term Friday. He pleaded guilty in November to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Prosecutors say D'Amico, his ex-girlfriend and a homeless veteran concocted a scheme about the vet giving the woman $20 when her car ran out of gas in Philadelphia.
The three raised funds for the vet online that D'Amico and his ex-girlfriend then spent most of themselves.
Before he was sentenced, D’Amico told U.S. District Judge Noel Hillman that he has changed and is focusing on his family.
”The person that did the things that led us here no longer exists,” D’Amico said.
