Former Wilton Businessman Sentenced for Defrauding Many, Including Military Veterans

A former Wilton businessman was sentenced Tuesday for defrauding individuals, most of whom were military veterans, out of more than $200,000, the DA announced.

Joseph T. Morris, 52, now of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. was sentenced to 27 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

According to court documents and statements made in court, Morris and two others formed a company in 2011 to develop business opportunities in Iraq. Their initial focus was to establish a pizza restaurant at the U.S. Consulate Compound in Erbil, Iraq and establishing a business to distribute and install specialty window film.

Morris served as the in-country manager in Iraq for the company.

According to the DA’s office, Morris made numerous fake claims to his co-founders regarding the businesses, knowing they would communicate the information to potential investors. Through fake emails and photographs, Morris falsely represented that a lease had been signed to establish the pizzeria and renovations were underway. He also falsely represented that the company had an exclusive arrangement with a specialty window film manufacturer.

Approximately a dozen investors, most of whom were U.S. military veterans invested approximately $175,000 in the business.

Morris used large sums of the money for his own personal use rather than legitimate business expenses.

The scheme was revealed in late April to early May 2012 when one of the co-founders discovered that the company did not have a lease or agreement to open and operate a pizza restaurant at the U.S. consulate compound in Erbil or have an exclusive arrangement for the window film.

Morris also defrauded two individuals out of $20,000 as part of a plan to create an air cargo company based in Ghana.

As part of his sentence, Morris was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $205,849. He was ordered to report to prison Jan. 15, 2016.

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