Two Bucks County Men Convicted at Trial in Connection With Multiple Fraud Schemes

PHILADELPHIA – United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Alan Kane, 59, of Jamison, Pennsylvania, and Derrell Johnson, 42, of Bensalem, Pa., were convicted Friday at trial for their actions linked to multiple fraud schemes.

A federal jury convicted Kane, an attorney, on two counts of bankruptcy fraud, one count of filing a false claim in a bankruptcy proceeding, and one count of making a false statement to the FBI.

Johnson was convicted on two counts of making a false statement to the FBI.

In January of this year, they and codefendant Jonathan Barger, 55, of Huntingdon Valley, Pa., the owner of a local plating company, were charged in a 12-count indictment that laid out three different fraud schemes: (1) a scheme to steal a house from a dead man’s family; (2) a scheme to defraud the City of Philadelphia out of property taxes that were due on the stolen house; and (3) a scheme to defraud Barger’s creditors through bankruptcy. Barger was implicated in all three schemes and pleaded guilty in June to all counts with which he was charged.

In a suit filed by the family to get their house back, Kane represented the party who had stolen the house, Joseph Ruggiero[1], and made repeated false statements supporting Ruggiero’s claim to good title, despite knowing that the deeds transferring the property away from the family were fraudulent. Kane also filed a false counterclaim against the family, claiming Barger’s company was entitled to more than $133,000 for work purportedly done to improve the house after it had been stolen.

After claiming in the state court suit that Ruggiero had good title to the house, Kane represented Ruggiero before the Social Security Administration and represented that Ruggiero did not own the house because the deeds were fraudulent. This was done to ensure Ruggiero would still receive SSI benefits.

Kane next filed a bankruptcy for Ruggiero, in which they claimed that Ruggiero had valid title to the house. The bankruptcy served to stay the family’s state court suit and prevent them from winning back the house. Kane then filed a false claim against Ruggiero in the bankruptcy, on behalf of Barger’s company, in an effort to steal some of the equity in the house for Barger in the event that Ruggiero lost the house to the family.

Johnson had helped with the preparation and filing of two fraudulent deeds used to steal the house, and also helped with the filing of a false claim with the City of Philadelphia to avoid a large tax bill that was due on the house. Johnson was paid with two checks for his services in helping steal the house and the tax avoidance scam. When Johnson was interviewed by the FBI, he lied, claiming that he didn’t recognize the fraudulent deeds and had nothing to do with the theft of the house. He also claimed the two checks he received were really meant to provide payment to another person.

Kane and Johnson are scheduled to be sentenced on January 28, 2025. Kane faces a maximum possible sentence of 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a $1 million fine, and a $400 special assessment, and Johnson faces a maximum possible sentence of 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a $500,000 fine, and $200 special assessment.

“The fraud schemes in which the defendants were involved differed in their details,” said U.S. Attorney Romero. “But they shared a common goal: scheming, cheating, and lying for illicit financial gain — be it at the expense of a family, a city, or a creditor. We will continue to hold accountable those involved in misappropriating money like this or caught lying to the FBI.”

“White collar crimes, such as bankruptcy fraud, erode confidence in our financial systems,” said Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Philadelphia. “The FBI and our partners remain committed to protecting the integrity of our financial institutions and bringing to justice those who seek to deceive and defraud the public through devious financial schemes.”

The case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Dubnoff and Special Assistant United States Attorney Hannah McCollum.