07-1621 U.S. v. Boisture

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Mail Fraud
Sufficiency of the evidence

Where a mail fraud defendant mailed a document for the purpose of avoiding investigation, the evidence was sufficient to support a conviction, even though the defendant had already received payment.

"Unlike the later-mailed invoices in Maze, the P & A Reports here tied into and helped complete the scheme as a whole. Although they had received payment for the well closures, Boisture, Veatch, and Hanisch had a strong incentive to keep all the documentation surrounding the well closures uniform so as to avoid arousing suspicion. The invoices that Boisture had previously submitted to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management contained charges for bridge plugs in the two wells identified in the P & A Reports. Documenting the installation of bridge plugs on the P & A Reports ensured that all of the paperwork surrounding the job was consistent. Moreover, discrepancies between the invoices and the Reports could provide a tip-off to the fraud."

Affirmed.

07-1621 U.S. v. Boisture

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Young, J., Rovner, J.

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