Defendants Sentenced for Fraudulent Arson Conspiracy

ASHLAND, Ky. - A Greenup, Kentucky woman, Manjit K. Singh, 49, and her daughter, Harpneet K. Bath, 27, a resident of British Columbia, Canada, were sentenced in federal court on Wednesday, to 18 months and 9 months in prison, respectively, by U.S. District Court Judge David L. Bunning, for conspiring to burn down Singh’s convenience store in Greenup, in order to fraudulently obtain insurance proceeds.           

In her plea agreement, Singh admitted to offering a confidential informant $5,000, in January 2020, to burn down the convenience store she owned and operated, Wolf’s Food Mart and Pool Hall, in Greenup.  The store was insured by Scottsdale Insurance Company, and Singh intended to burn it down for the purpose of collecting insurance proceeds.  Singh acknowledged instructing the informant on how she wanted the arson to be performed, and promised him that he would receive $1,000 up front, and the remaining $4,000 after she received the insurance proceeds from the fraudulent claim of fire loss.  Bath admitted to traveling from Canada to Greenup, in order to help her mother commit the fraud.  In their plea agreements, both admitted that they met with the informant on the eve of the planned arson.  At that meeting, Bath gave him $900 in cash and obtained his bank account information, so she could wire him the remaining funds, once the insurer paid the fraudulent claim.  Law enforcement officers disrupted the plot before the arson was committed.

Under federal law, Singh and Bath must serve 85 percent of their prison sentences and will be under the supervision of the U.S. Probation Office for two years.  In addition to their prison sentences, Singh was ordered to pay a fine of $5,000 and Bath a fine of $2,500.

Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; James Robert Brown, Special Agent in Charge, FBI Louisville Field Division; and ?????, Greenup County Sheriff, jointly made the announcement. 

The investigation was directed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Greenup County Sheriff’s Office.  The United States was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul McCaffrey.

The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice.  Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.

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