North Dakota Man Sentenced for Filing False Claim

United States Attorney Randolph J. Seiler announced that a Halliday, North Dakota, man convicted of False Claim was sentenced on March 4, 2016, by Chief Judge Jeffrey L. Viken, U.S. District Court.

Karl Jakob Knutson, age 28, was sentenced to 12 months of imprisonment, followed by 3 years of supervised release, ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund, and a fine of $7,380.04.

Knutson was charged on May 19, 2015, and pleaded guilty on November 20, 2015.

The conviction stems from Knutson falsely claiming to the Farm Service Agency to have lost 129 head of cattle during the October 2013 winter storm Atlas, knowing he had lost no more than 13.

This case was investigated by the Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Agriculture.  Assistant U.S. Attorney Ben Patterson prosecuted the case.