Fraudster Tries to Reduce His Sentence by Continuing His Fraud
Post number 5267

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In Spite of Defendants Claims He Will Spend Serious Time in Prison

In United States Of America v. Henry Ford, Criminal Action No. 23-130, United States District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania (January 5, 2026) Henry Ford (no relation to the creator of the Model T), also known as “Cleothus Lefty Jackson,” was indicted and pled guilty to one count of securities fraud and aiding and abetting, along with seven counts of wire fraud.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Defendant falsely represented to victims that a business he controlled, Fallcatcher, had “pilot approvals in writing” with two large insurance companies and that several states “want the [Fallcatcher] technology” [Count Five]. In reality, Fallcatcher did not have any pilot programs with insurance companies and the Letter Of Intent was not a legitimate document.

Ford founded and operated several Fallcatcher entities, holding various executive roles, and purportedly used some of the funds to promote the business and hire employees.

Ford orchestrated a fraudulent investment scheme involving the sale of securities tied to companies he controlled, collectively known as “Fallcatcher.” The scheme defrauded 61 victims out of nearly $5 million. The SEC recovered and returned a portion of the funds, but over $2 million in restitution remains outstanding.

Approximately sixty-one (61) investor victims invested $4,964,775.79 in Fallcatcher, in return for shares of Fallcatcher’s common stock at a price of $.50 per share. These investments constituted the purchase of securities. And although Defendant did not have access to the investment proceeds located in Fallcatcher bank accounts, bank records reflected that Defendant and his wife received approximately $493,000 in payments from Fallcatcher after the proceeds were in the accounts.

The Present Criminal Case

In the instant criminal case a grand jury returned an eight-count Indictment against Defendant. On May 13, 2025, Defendant pled guilty to all charges in the Indictment, pursuant to a written plea agreement. The parties agreed, pursuant to Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure 11(c)(1)(C), that a sentence of imprisonment between forty-six (46) and seventy-eight (78) months is the appropriate disposition of this case.

Legal Issues & Sentencing

The sentencing in this case centers on the calculation of “loss” under § 2B1.1 of the United States Sentencing Commission Guidelines. The court clarified that “loss” means the actual harm suffered by victims. This means that any money recovered and returned to victims should be deducted from the loss calculation.

Analysis/Discussion

First, the money recovered by the SEC and returned to victims was deducted from the loss calculation, as only the net loss actually suffered by victims is relevant to a sentencing court.

Second, the court rejected the argument that funds not returned but used for “legitimate business purposes” should be excluded from the loss calculation. The rationale is that such expenditures, even if ostensibly for business operations, do not offset the loss suffered by victims, as the funds were obtained through fraud.

Fraud Loss Calculation in the Presentence Report

In the Presentence Report (“PSR”), the Probation Officer set the applicable fraud loss at $4,964,775.79. Since the loss exceeded $3,500,000, but was less than $9,500,000,” eighteen (18) offense levels were added.

Defendant Ford objected to the loss amount. The Court found that under § 2B1.1 of the Sentencing Guidelines: (1) the money returned to the victims by the SEC is not included in the amount of “actual loss”; and (2) the remainder of investment funds apparently used for “legitimate business expenses” are not excluded from “actual loss.”

The Government argued that because Defendant’s misrepresentations successfully resulted in investors transferring approximately $4.9 million to Fallcatcher Inc., Defendant caused “actual loss” in that amount once the funds were out of the victims’ possession.

Since the $2,095,480.38 balance was actually lost by the victims, he received no credit. The defendant has clearly demonstrated acceptance of responsibility for the offense. Accordingly, the offense level is decreased by two levels. The defendant has assisted the authorities in the investigation or prosecution of the defendant’s own misconduct by timely notifying authorities of the intention to enter a plea of guilty. Accordingly, the offense level is decreased by one additional level.
Total Offense Level: 24

In conclusion the court concluded that at Offense Level of 24, with a Criminal History Category of II, the guideline range for imprisonment is fifty-seven (57) to seventy-one (71) months.

ZALMA OPINION

Fraudsters, even when arrested and convicted with a guilty plea insist on drawing courts into lengthy opinions to support the serious sentence the fraud perpetrator using a famous person’s name as his own, will be sentenced – contrary to his objections, between 57 and 71 months in prison for his fraud.

(c) 2025 Barry Zalma & ClaimSchool, Inc.

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