Iowa City couple sentenced for defrauding inmate

A husband and wife from Iowa City were sentenced to federal prison Monday for defrauding a Nebraska resident of over $100,000.

Chief Judge Robert Pratt sentenced Jermaine and Kristine Roberts Monday after they each entered guilty pleas Sept. 28, 2009 to one count of mail fraud and six counts of wire fraud, according to a news release from the United States Department of Justice.

According to the release, the Roberts' obtained money from the victim, a Nebraska man who was an inmate in an Iowa prison, on the premise that they were helping him get a new trial.

Though the Roberts' told the man they were filing paperwork for his new trial, the documents used to convince the man proved to be false, the release said.

The man was asked to mail or wire money to the Roberts' to continue their services, and the man paid out over $100,000 over a three-year period.

Jermaine Roberts was sentenced to five years in prison and Kristine Roberts was sentenced to 21 months. Each was also ordered to pay restitution to the victim for $103,424.91 and $700 in special assessments, and placed on three years of supervised release after their prison terms, according to the release.

The case was investigated by the Iowa Department of Corrections and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.