James G. Maloney, a former Chief Scientist at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI), along with his co-conspirators, was sentenced on Nov. 1, 2023, for defrauding both Georgia Tech and the CIA through fraudulent charges and false consulting activities on classified projects.
“Maloney, who was trusted to work on classified contracts for the U.S. government, took advantage of his high position at GTRI to line his own pockets at the public’s expense. In addition to losing his job and his top-secret security clearance, Maloney is now facing a prison sentence and will be required to pay more than $1.9 million in restitution,” said Ryan K. Buchanan.
Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta Keri Farley said in a Department of Justice press release: “Maloney’s sentence should send a clear message to anyone seeking to abuse their positions for personal gain, the FBI will find you and hold you accountable. Thanks to our extraordinary partnership with Georgia Tech, even with Maloney’s defense tactics he was unable to avoid the consequences of his crimes. He will now be held accountable with his coconspirators, closing out this lengthy case.”
From early 2007 till late 2013, James G. Maloney conspired with James J. Acree and James D. Fraley III—all experts in electromagnetic analysis and measurements—to defraud while working on classified projects at GTRI’s Advanced Concepts Laboratory (ACL), funded by the U.S Department of Defense and various intelligence agencies as disclosed by another DOJ press release.
Their scheme involved PCard fraud where Fraley misused his Georgia Tech credit card for personal expenses leading GTRI to believe they were legitimate business expenses; they managed approximately $200K in frivolous personal charges including remodeling and maintenance expenses for rental properties owned by Maloney and Fraley under J’s Services Inc., some of which were fraudulently charged to a classified GTRI contract funded by the CIA.
Between Dec. 2010 and Jul. 2013, James G. Maloney and James D. Fraley III worked as consultants for Spectra Research Inc., earning $196K through their company J’s Services; they improperly billed time for Spectra’s work to a classified CIA contract thereby violating Georgia Tech’s policies and diverting revenue for personal gain while using the university’s facilities and equipment.
The press release also revealed that James G. Maloney was sentenced to 5 years, 10 months in prison with 3 years supervised release, and $1,972,543.61 in restitution after pleading guilty on May 22, 2023. While James J. Acree received a sentence of 3 years probation with 12 months home confinement, and $604,692.56 restitution after pleading guilty on Aug.15, 2016; James D.Fraley III was sentenced to 3 years probation with 8 months home confinement and had to pay $476,960.95 in restitution after pleading guilty on Sep.2,2016.
