Erie man 'sorry that I got myself into this,' sentenced in $550K online love scam
What seemed like a budding online romance was actually a money-grabbing scheme.
The Erie man behind it is now heading to prison.
Henry Corder Jr., 68, was sentenced Monday to two years and 10 months in federal prison, along with a two-year term of supervised release, after scamming $550,000 from a Massachusetts woman he met on an online dating site.
U.S. District Judge David Cercone, who imposed the sentence in federal court in Erie, ordered Corder to pay restitution to the victim.
An exact amount would be determined in a separate order, Cercone said.
The sentence was below the federal sentencing guidelines of three years and 10 months to four years and nine months. Cercone cited the defendant's ailing health as a mitigating factor.
Corder is confined to a wheelchair and requires 24-hour care, said his attorney Stephen Sebald. He also suffers from a number of conditions, including Type 2 diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, sleep apnea and glaucoma, according to Sebald's sentencing memorandum.
Cercone said the defendant's ailments could still be managed by the federal Bureau of Prisons and that his punishment must be a deterrent to others.
"This was a crime that continued over a period of time, it wasn't one isolated incident," Cercone said. "It was a crime that involved a lot of money — not $500 or $5,000 but over $500,000. The court needs to propose a sentence that deters others from engaging in similar conduct."
Corder's scheme: Bad date: Erie man, 67, pleads guilty to $550K fraud in online romance with Mass. woman
How he did it
According to an indictment issued in May 2017, Corder used an internet dating service to initiate contact with the Massachusetts woman, identified in the court records only as E.C. After they met online, she told Corder "that she had been previously swindled online by an individual fraudulently seeking assistance," the indictment said.
Seizing on that disclosure, Corder launched his scheme, which lasted from February 2012 to April 2015, to gain E.C.'s confidence and give him money.
Corder made several false claims to the victim, including that he was a U.S. Marshal who could protect her from her prior fraud encounter and that he suffered from cancer and needed money for treatments, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Corder pleaded guilty in May to one felony count each of wire fraud and using the stolen money to engage in monetary transactions, including paying off his mortgage and buying a Harley-Davidson motorcycle and two cars, including a $30,500 2010 Chevy Camaro.
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Assistant U.S. Attorney Christian Trabold expressed his skepticism, citing Corder's prior fraud conviction from 1992, in which he stole over $7,000 from the Wesleyville Fireman's Relief Association savings account.
"Corder's theft from a charity shows a particular hardness of heart that was repeated here when he left a widow penniless," Trabold said in his sentencing memorandum filed Dec. 8. "Obviously, Corder learned nothing from that earlier conviction except maybe how to accomplish a more lucrative and despicable goal."
On Monday, Corder told the court that he was "sorry that I got myself into this."
A.J. Rao can be reached at arao@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNRao.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Henry Corder Jr.: Erie man behind online dating fraud heads to prison
