Former Massac County Official Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud and Mail Fraud

BENTON, Ill. – Christopher Thompson, 30, of Kevil, Kentucky, pleaded guilty today to one count of 
Wire Fraud and seven counts of Mail Fraud for engaging in a scheme to defraud the Massac County 
Emergency  Management  Agency.     Thompson  was  the  Assistant  Director  of  the  Emergency 
Management Agency in Massac County and also served as the IT Manager for the Massac County Board of 
Commissioners.   As part of the plea, Thompson admitted to using official business accounts to pay 
for personal expenditures and admitted to opening up business lines of credit without authority for 
personal use causing a loss in excess of $50,000.   As part of the plea, Thompson consented to 
forfeiture of items fraudulently purchased and otherwise consented to a forfeiture judgment in the 
amount of $52,054.51.
Thompson’s  sentencing  is  scheduled  for  February  24,  2022.    A  federal  district  court  
judge  will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other 
statutory factors.

Each count of Wire Fraud and Mail Fraud carries a statutory maximum sentence of up to twenty years 
in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, three years supervised release and restitution.

FBI  Springfield  Division  conducted  the  investigation  with  the  assistance  of  the  Massac  
County Sheriff’s Office.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Norman Smith and Monica Stump are prosecuting the case.