Former Rhode Island State Senator James Doyle III pleaded guilty to 31 counts of bank fraud and one count each of filing a false tax return and failing to file a tax return.
Doyle is scheduled to be sentenced on January 18, 2019.
Appearing before U.S. District Court Judge William E. Smith, Doyle admitted to the Court that as owner of Doyle Respiratory, LLC and Doyle Sleep Solutions, LLC, he engaged in $74 million dollars in worthless bank transactions executed in check-kiting schemes through bank accounts he controlled at Bristol County Savings Bank, Alliance Blackstone Valley Federal Credit Union (ABVFCU) and Santander Bank. Doyle admitted that he executed the scheme through the use of checks, cash withdrawals, ATMs electronic transfers and ACH transfer payments.
Doyle admitted to the Court that he accomplished the check-kiting scheme by writing checks from accounts he knew were not backed by sufficient funds and depositing those checks into different accounts to cover daily overdrafts in that account. Simultaneously, he wrote checks out of the second account and deposited those checks back into the first bank account. The purpose and effect of writing and depositing these worthless checks was to manipulate the numerical balances in the checking accounts, and thereby create the false and fraudulent appearance that the accounts had sufficient available funds in the accounts and to deceive and trick the banks into honoring the checks drawn against the checking accounts with insufficient funds.
In order to avoid detection, Doyle admitted to the Court, he did this daily throughout the life of the scheme, at times, undertaking in excess of 50 transactions per day. At times, he also utilized ATM machines in order to lengthen the time it took for checks to be presented for clearing.
The investigation revealed that over the life of the scheme the defendant wrote tens of thousands of worthless checks between the banks at which he maintained accounts.
Doyle also admitted to the Court that for tax years 2013 thru 2016 he and his wife failed to report to the IRS more than $1 million dollars in income and failed to pay $305,426 in taxes due the IRS.
Related Slideshow: 2018 Rhode Island Criminal Justice Hall of Fame Inductees - June 2018
Clements was appointed to the Providence Police Department on May 5, 1985, as a night Patrol Officer in the Uniform Division. He then went on to serve on the Neighborhood Response Team Uniformed Task Force before being transferred to the Special Investigations Bureau, the department’s vice and drug unit. In 1990, Clements was promoted to Detectives where he worked in the night squad. In 1992, Detective Clements was promoted to the rank of Sergeant where he spent three years as a night Sergeant in Sub-District 1, South Providence. Sergeant Clements was then transferred to the Detective Bureau where he served as the Squad 2 Sergeant and spent the next seven years supervising the investigations of all major crimes including murder, robbery, burglary, firearms offenses and gang activity. In a squad that carried an extremely heavy caseload, he played an active role in several major investigations during this time.
In 2002, Hugh was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant and transferred to the midnight shift of the Patrol Bureau. Lieutenant Clements was later assigned as District 5 Commander covering the neighborhoods of Olneyville, Hartford, and Silver Lake. Consistent with the department philosophy at this time, the true community police model was practiced with several creative and innovative initiatives carried out in this particular district. He was transferred back to the Detective Bureau, and in December 2005, he was promoted to Captain where he was responsible for all major crimes operations in the Investigative Division.
In 2008, when promoted to Major he was assigned for one year as the Commander of the Homeland Security Division, before being reassigned as the Commanding Officer of the Uniform Division.
He later served as Deputy Chief and was appointed as Acting Chief of Police in July 2011, and on January 6, 2012, he was appointed as the 37th Chief of the Department and promoted to the rank of Colonel.
He was named to the bench in October of 2010 by then-Governor Donald Carcieri. He replaced Judge Rogeriee Thompson when she was elevated to serve as a U.S. Circuit Judge.
Before being appointed to the court, Stone was a partner at the Providence-based law firm Adler Pollock & Sheehan.
Stone was a graduate of Fisk University and earned a J.D. from Case Western Reserve School of Law.
Director, Roger Williams University Justice System Training, and Research Institute; Lieutenant, East Providence Police Department (Ret.)
Robert McKenna is the Associate Dean and serves as an Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice in the School of Justice Studies at Roger Williams University.
Additionally, he serves as the Director of the Justice System Training & Research Institute, the professional development component of the School of Justice Studies.
Associate Dean McKenna holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice and a Master of Science degree in the Administration of Justice from Salve Regina University, Newport, Rhode Island, as well as a Juris Doctor degree from The New England School of Law, Boston, Massachusetts.
(retired) Detective, Providence Police Department; Investigator, Rhode Island Office of Attorney General
A 1968 graduate of the Providence Police Academy, Stephen J. Springer served in the Patrol Bureau for approximately five years before being promoted to Detective. For the next 30 years, he served as a Detective, largely in the South Providence area. During that time, he served as the primary or secondary investigator on more than 200 homicides, a number unmatched in Rhode Island law enforcement. He joined the RI Office of Attorney General in 2004 as an investigator, retiring in December 2017.
He has received numerous awards over his career, including the Attorney General’s Law Enforcement Award (1978), Rhea Archambeault Award (1984), Medal of Valor (1984), Commissioner’s Award (1993), Rhode Island Justice Assistance “Neil Houston Award” (2001), and FOP Outstanding Police Officer of the Year (2002).
Over the course of his nearly 50 years in law enforcement, Stephen Springer epitomized professionalism, dedication, courage, and integrity, tirelessly working on the streets for his entire career, and in the process served as the face of law enforcement to all those he encountered.
Springer and his wife Virginia McGinn reside in Barrington, RI.
Benjamin joined the RI State Police Department in 1958, retiring as a Major in 1990, having served 15 of those years as the youngest and longest serving Executive Officer in the country.
As a graduate of the F.B.I. Academy, he was recognized for his expertise in the prevention of organized crime and served proudly under the direction of the legendary Colonel Walter E. Stone.
Consistent with his altruistic nature, he had been a volunteer fireman for the Marieville Fire Department for 15 years as well as a U.S. Marine Corps Veteran of the Korean Conflict.
