Philippines-Based Fraudster Robert Wayne Boling Jr. Pleads Guilty to Targeting Thousands of U.S. Servicemembers and Veterans
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on October 20 that Robert Wayne Boling, Jr., an American citizen based in the Philippines, has pleaded guilty for his role in an identity-theft and fraud scheme that targeted thousands of U.S. servicemembers and veterans. Boling pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. He is scheduled to be sentenced on January 14, 2027, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each count; a federal district court judge will determine the sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
According to the Justice Department, Boling's co-conspirator Fredrick Brown, who worked as a civilian medical records administrator for the U.S. Army in South Korea, took digital photographs of the personally identifying information of thousands of military-affiliated individuals and provided the stolen information to Boling. Boling and his co-conspirators used the information to compromise servicemembers' and veterans' bank accounts and online government benefits accounts, and worked with a network of money mules in the United States who received the stolen funds and remitted a portion of them to the Philippines. Boling was deported by the Philippines to the United States in May 2026 to face charges.
Boling is the third defendant to plead guilty in the scheme. Co-conspirators Fredrick Brown and Trorice Crawford previously pleaded guilty and were sentenced to 151 and 46 months in prison, respectively. Co-conspirators Jongmin Seok and Allan Albert Kerr remain fugitives. James R. Ives, Director of the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, said defrauding the men and women who defended the country is reprehensible and that DCIS and its partners will relentlessly pursue those who steal from service members.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：美国国防部五角大楼航拍（资料图），公共领域。Photo: Aerial view of the Pentagon (file photo), public domain.
