Robert Irey Admits Guilt In Bogus Investment Scheme

According to a report in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, a Greene County man accused with two others of ripping off 22 customers of more than $2 million in a bogus investment scheme involving a fictitious South Carolina green energy power plant project admitted to his guilt Thursday in federal court. Robert Irey, 59, of Clarksville, pleaded guilty to mail and wire fraud conspiracy. Irey admitted that he and two cohorts — Jonathan Freeze, of Pittsburgh and Kevin Carney, 59, of Euclid, Ohio — told investors they had $100 million in financing for a waste-to-energy power plant when in fact they didn’t have enough to pay their own living expenses. They promised a high return on investment, didn’t pay off, and then used the money they fleeced from victims to pay for rent, restaurant meals, clothes, weddings and vacations, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Lee Karl. The three were indicted this summer following an investigation by U.S. postal inspectors and the FBI. Irey is free on bond, pending sentencing, which has been set for March. Cases against Carney and Freeze are pending.