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A U.S. District Court judge in Newark sentenced Matthew O’Callaghan, 43, of Upper Saddle River via videoconference Thursday to a plea-bargained 51 months -- a little over four years -- in a federal penitentiary.O'Callaghan “impersonated two bank executives interested in funding syndicated loans for global companies,” Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael A. Honig said.
Referring to himself as “Edward Tierney” and “Michael Nash,” O’Callaghan submitted several bogus documents to the victim while using email addresses that appeared legitimate, false email signature blocks for the aliases that bore a bank logo and a form carrying the bank’s tax ID number, the U.S. attorney said.
O’Callaghan “directed the victims to wire funds to a bank account at [the purported bank] that O’Callaghan controlled,” Honig said.
He eventually converted $4.9 million of their money for himself -- buying a new car, joining a private club, gambling and traveling, the U.S. attorney said.
FBI agents arrested O’Callaghan in March 2020. He took a deal from the government rather than go to trial, pleading guilty last December to wire fraud.
O'Callaghan will have to serve just all of the four years and three months because there's no parole in the federal prison system.
In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton sentenced O’Callaghan to three years of supervised release.
Honig credited special FBI agents and inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, both in Newark, with the investigation leading to the plea and sentence, secured by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Fayer of her Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
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