Gretna Brothers Sentenced To Five Years For Their Role In Convenience Store Arson

WAEL HAMMAD, aged 38, and ALAA HAMMAD, age 31, both residents of Gretna, Louisiana, were sentenced today by U. S. District Judge Eldon E. Fallon for their involvement in the December 2011 arson of Fat City Discount, their convenience store located in Metairie, Louisiana, announced U. S. Attorney Dana Boente.  Both men plead guilty on October 4, 2012, to conspiring to and destroying by fire their convenience store.  Judge Fallon sentenced both defendants to five years imprisonment, one year of supervised release following imprisonment, and ordered $94,333.52 in restitution to their insurance company.

According to court records, the HAMMADs, faked an accidental fire in the kitchen area of their store and then filed an insurance claim for damages to their merchandise.

This case was investigated jointly by Special Agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Jefferson Parish Fire Department and the Jefferson Parish Sherriff’s Office.  The case was prosecuted by Tony Gordon Sanders of the Violent Crimes Unit.