309 Years Behind Bars: Unpacking Louisiana’s Record Prison Sentence

What's the longest prison sentence ever handed out in Louisiana history? Not counting life sentences because multiple lifetimes add up quickly. The badge of honor goes to  Robert Thompson (AKA John Lawson) from Zachary, Louisiana. He was sentenced to 309 years behind bars, which became a federal record for one of the longest white-collar sentences of all time.

What nonviolent crime could land you a record-shattering jail stay?  Well, you might expect a 309-year sentence to be reserved for something like a violent murderer or some insane torturer. But the crimes that earned such a serious punishment make the picture clear, especially when you see the court throw conspiracy, money laundering, obstruction of justice, and 5 types of fraud charges at you.

How He Ran a $20 Million Heist From Prison

Robert Thompson was doing time for a previous fraud case when he managed to restart his fraud business. Thompson became the ring leader of a fraud circle, calling the shots from his prison cell. He was literally calling the shots with a cell phone after he managed to bribe a corrections officer $10,000 to sneak in. Over the two years, Thompson and his several accomplices stole heaps of sensitive information from over 61 people, churches, businesses, and banks.

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Thompson and company were able to steal presumably $100,000s from victims, in one case attempting to pull $20,000,000 from a bank account. The con was easy for Thompson to pull off in some cases. The FBI detailed how he would call banks and pretend to be an elderly stroke victim who needed to remember their personal details, then, in some cases, collect more information by calling the victim and pretending to be law enforcement who was investigating identity theft.

Every Charge Added Up

Things went smoothly for the fraudsters until about 2 years in. The FBI was alerted to something weird going on when a car dealership reported having $50,000 stolen from their bank account. Thompson and accomplices were arrested and then charged in 2010. Thompson was charged by Chief U.S. District Judge Ralph E. Tyson with the following charges:

• on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and obstruct justice;
• seven counts of wire fraud;
• one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering;
• one count of mail fraud.
• one count of honest services mail fraud.
• one count of money laundering.
• four counts of access device fraud.
• two counts of aggravated identity theft.
• one count of computer fraud.
• one count of bank fraud.
• and one count of obstruction of justice.

The charges added up to a 309-year sentence, which is the longest for a white-collar crime in the history of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Louisiana, and the fourth longest sentence for a white-collar crime in all of American history.