Another Renewable Energy Project Leader Busted for Fraud-This One In Pasco

According to news sources, not only was a Pasco based manager defrauding the government, but the scheme actually stretched across the country, including states in the Southeast and East Coast.

After a multi-month investigation and court proceedings, 43-year-old Scott C. Johnson became the fifth person who will face jail time and fines over a controversial project known as Gen-X Energy.

The group reported was going to produce bio fuel, but ended up cheating the government out of hundreds of millions in tax credits. Not only was the Pasco-based business defrauding by way of it's Moses Lake plant, but it included start ups in Georgia and Florida.

The scheme happened between 2012 and 2015.  In 2012 Johnson and his partners realized the bio fuel plan was not going to work. Faced with a closure or foreclosure situation similar to Solyndra (solar panels) and dozens of other similar companies, Johnson and his four conspirators came up with a scheme.

By either falsifying documents and other financial and production records, they claimed to have manufactured 72 million bio fuel credits which were sold for $57 million, which allowed him to maintain a lavish lifestyle, according to the Tri-City Herald. They also received over $9 million in refunds from the IRS. Some of the fraud involved recycling bio fuel multiple times but crediting existing supplies as "new."

He will receive just over 8 years in prison. Gen-X becomes well over the 110th green energy company in the U.S. to either shut down, go bankrupt, or be accused of fraud and financial issues in order to make a profit. The green energy push began with the Obama stimulus plan during his administration.