'One-Man Crime Wave': Merrimack Valley Scammer Gets 18 Months In Federal Prison

BOSTON -- A former Internal Revenue Service clerk once described as a "one-man crime wave'' was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to pocketing thousands of dollars in fraudulent refunds from Home Depot, including the Tewksbury location.

Robert P. Dooley III, 56, of Salem, pleaded guilty in federal court in June to 10 counts of wire fraud between January and February.

During that two-month period, Dooley admitted he hit 48 stores in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Rhode Island.

He was sentenced on Thursday to 18 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release.

Dooley also was ordered to pay $46,798 in restitution and stay away from Home Depot and Lowe's stores.

Dooley's scheme involved going into a store empty-handed, loading a shopping cart with big-ticket items, then walking over to the returns desk to receive a store credit for items he never bought.

He told the clerk he lost the sales receipt, but provided a driver's license or his former IRS badge as identification to receive a store gift card, which he would then sell.

Dooley pocketed more than $45,000 during those two months, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. And it wasn't the first time.

In 2007, Dooley was sentenced to five years in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release and $335,665 in restitution after pleading guilty to the same type of scheme, again targeting Home Depot.

Between May 2002 and October 2005, Dooley pleaded guilty to scamming Home Depot stores in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island, Texas and Oklahoma.

In that case, Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. McNeil wrote in his sentencing memorandum that Dooley, who was described as a "one-man crime wave" has an "extraordinary record of fraud, deceit and theft across at least nine states.''

Last April, Dooley was charged in Lowell District Court with two counts of larceny over $250 for targeting the Lowes home-improvement store in Lowell. He was issued a store gift card for $573, according to police.