For More Information Contact:
Bill Cosh 608/266-1221
MADISON – Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen announced that on March 21, 2011, former Madison resident Joshua Burlin was found guilty of one count of identity theft and one count of false swearing, both felonies, following his entry of a guilty plea before Dane Circuit Judge Nicholas J. McNamara.
Attorneys for the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ), acting as special prosecutors for Dane County, filed a criminal complaint in Dane County Circuit Court in July 2010 against Joshua Burlin, charging Burlin with five counts of false swearing and one count of identity theft. The crimes of false swearing and identity theft are both punishable by a fine not to exceed $10,000, imprisonment not to exceed 6 years, or both.
The false swearing charges against Burlin are based upon allegedly false testimony Burlin gave in a deposition taken by the Department of Justice in December 2009. According to the complaint, Burlin falsely testified that he had never listed fictitious addresses on the Internet for his various locksmith business names and that he had never posted fictitious consumer reviews regarding his own business or competing businesses. However, according to the complaint, Burlin did in fact use false addresses and posted phony reviews on the Internet.
In addition, the complaint charges Burlin with one count of identity theft for posting a phony ad on Craigslist stating that a competing locksmith business was for sale, in March 2009. As part of the resolution of the case, the remaining four counts of false swearing were disposed of as read-in counts, which will be considered for purposes of sentencing.
Burlin is scheduled to be sentenced in Dane County Circuit Court on April 26, 2011, at 11:00 a.m.
This case was investigated by the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection. Wisconsin Statute Chapter 950 Victim Services are being provided by the Wisconsin Department of Justice Office of Crime Victim Services. Assistant Attorneys General Eric D. Défort and John S. Greene represent the State of Wisconsin as special prosecutors.
A copy of the criminal complaint is available at:
http://www.doj.state.wi.us/news/files/CriminalComplaintFiled07302010.pdf
