Former U.S. Coast Guard It Contractor Sentenced For Stealing Personal Information From Computers

Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that LARRY MATHEWS, 34, of Pawcatuck, Conn., was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford to three years of probation for stealing personal information from hundreds of computers and personal electronic devices that had been brought to him for repair.  Judge Chatigny also ordered that MATHEWS must spend the first four months of his probation on a 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. home curfew with electronic monitoring, perform 150 hours of community service and pay a fine of $5000.

According to court documents and statements made in court, MATHEWS was the proprietor of a computer repair business in Pawcatuck.  Beginning in 2008, MATHEWS was also employed as a civilian contract employee for the U.S. Coast Guard as a computer “help desk” technician.  On more than 250 occasions, for his own use, MATHEWS copied personal information and files from computers and personal electronic devices that had been brought to him for repair.  The personal information and files included account names and passwords, and sexually-explicit photographs and videos.

The investigation revealed that MATHEWS shared the stolen personal information only with coworkers, one of whom reported the criminal activity to law enforcement in 2013.

On November 12, 2014, MATHEWS pleaded guilty to one count of computer intrusion in furtherance of a tortious invasion of privacy.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service and was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Edward Chang and Carolyn Ikari.

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U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
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