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A Greene County man has been sentenced to a year in federal prison after admitting to fraudulently applying for and collecting COVID-19 relief funds and stealing money from the Missouri Institute of Natural Sciences, a private museum just south of Springfield that is home to Henry the Triceratops.
Daniel Pomeroy pleaded guilty to two Class C felony counts of wire fraud in November 2023. He was sentenced on Tuesday, June 18, by U.S. District Judge Steven Baugh.
According to online court records, Judge Baugh sentenced Pomeroy to one year on each charge but ordered the sentences to run concurrently. Pomeroy will be on probation for three years after he is released from prison. The judge also ordered him to pay approximately $77,000 in restitution.
According to federal court documents, Pomeroy admitted to applying for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans in his own name for two non-existent companies. Pomeroy successfully obtained two PPP loans totaling at least $38,000.
Pomeroy also admitted to fraudulently transferring approximately $78,000 from the Missouri Institute of Natural Sciences’ Simmons Bank account into his own account.
Matt Folia, director of the Missouri Institute of Natural Sciences, said in a previous interview that Pomeroy had no affiliation with the museum or its staff or volunteers.
“We had no idea who this guy was. He hacked into Simmons Bank,” Forill said in November 2023. “Our accountant was the one who noticed the problem. We then alerted the bank to the fraud. We were the ones who tipped them off. The bank then asked if they could call the Greene County Sheriff’s Department, which we did. That’s what started the investigation.”
According to court documents, the museum discovered that between Sept. 1, 2021 and Dec. 6, 2021, $77,855 was transferred without authorization from the museum’s account by a third party who improperly used the museum’s information.
There were approximately 60 fraudulent transactions linked to the account. According to records provided by Simmons Bank, some of the transfers were routed through an entity called “Wise,” which then routed the fraudulent transfers to Pomeroy.
Forill credited the museum’s volunteer accountant and board member, Barb Hauser, with uncovering the fraudulent transactions, which Pomeroy reportedly started out small and undetected.
“This guy had been attacking us for months,” Forill said, “and then he got greedy and bought something for about $900, and our accountant found out.”
About the Missouri Institute of Natural Sciences
The Missouri Museum of Natural Science is located at 2327 W. Farm Road 190 and is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Admission is free and the museum is staffed primarily by volunteers. The museum houses hundreds of animal, plant and mineral specimens, including Henry, the largest male Triceratops fossil ever found, at least 30 percent larger than any other Triceratops.
For more information, visit the Missouri Museum of Natural Science’s website and Facebook page.
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