Man Guilty Of $167K Welfare Fraud Gets 21 Months In Prison
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- The man who avoided federal investigators while living on a private yacht, and who claimed to be Scottish royalty, was sentenced to 21 months in prison and was ordered to pay full restitution for welfare fraud.
Colin Chisholm and his wife, Andrea, were also ordered to pay $167,000 in restitution.
The couple were collecting welfare and medical assistance from Minnesota and Florida while living on a $1 million yacht and in a Deephaven Mansion.
Andrea Chisholm pleaded guilty for her role in the scheme last year and was released in December after completing her 8-month jail sentence.
With credit for time served, Colin Chisholm could be released as soon as June, but prosecutors hinted that more charges could be coming, possibly from Florida, where they also collected welfare and received money from the IRS.
On Monday, the man who once called himself Lord Chisholm appeared in court in an orange jail jumpsuit.
Prosecutors say for seven years, the Chisholms wove a tapestry of lies in order to collect welfare benefits meant for Minnesota's poorest citizens.
"When you are collecting public assistance from two states and living on a $1.2 million yacht, that is beyond the imagination for most of us," Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said.
Court documents revealed that Chisholms' deceptions were widespread.
Colin Chisholm told potential investors for his now defunct company, The Caribbean Television Network, that he had produced "Gilligan's Island" and the 1970s police drama "The Streets of San Francisco." Prosecutors say the network was a sham corporation and that Colin Chisholm, as its CEO, laundered investors' money for the couple's own use.
Colin Chisholm also told associates he had a degree from Harvard Medical School. In fact, he holds a two-year degree in funeral home management.
At the time of the Chisholms' arrest, they had more than $3 million in the bank. They have not filed tax returns since 2001.
"We believe the Chisholms have perpetrated fraud in other jurisdictions," Freeman said. "We are proud that we were the first to bring them to justice."
Colin Chisholm's defense attorneys said in court that they plan to challenge the $167,000 restitution order. They plan to argue that Chisholm was entitled to some of the benefits he received from Minnesota during the seven years the couple were receiving them.
