Trending
WHEELING – A sentencing hearing has been set for the owner of the Elkins Memorial Gardens cemetery, who defrauded hundreds of customers, U.S. Attorney Matthew L. Harvey announced this week.
Jeffery Phares, 65, of Fayetteville, is set to be sentenced on Tuesday, Nov. 10 in Wheeling Federal Court before U.S. District Judge John Preston Bailey..
Phares pleaded guilty to wire fraud in March and admitted to "misleading victims who placed orders for grave markers, accepting their money, sending design approvals and then using the funds for his personal use." It was indicated in March that Phares "repeatedly misled victims regarding delivery delays" of the grave markers.
"According to court documents, there are approximately 225 victims with more than $600,000 in unfilled grave marker orders," the release states.
Phares faces up to 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine the sentence "after considering the U.S. sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors."
Phares is the owner and operator of four cemeteries across the state, including Elkins Memorial Gardens in Elkins, Greenlawn Memorial Park in New Martinsville, Greenlawn Memorial Cemetery in Clarksburg and Forest Lawn Memorial Gardens in Jane Lew.
As part of his plea agreement, Phares agreed to pay restitution to the victims of his offense conduct and to provide the government with "all the necessary documentation" to determine the amount of the restitution, which "will be determined prior to sentencing."
The U.S. Attorney's office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Probation and the West Virginia Attorney General's Office have received multiple submitted contracts between alleged victims and Phares, and they are being reviewed as part of the restitution process, the release states.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jarod Douglas is prosecuting on behalf of the government. The investigative agencies for the case include the FBI, the Wetzel County Sheriff’s Office and the Wetzel County Prosecuting Attorney's Office.