A man from Overland Park has been sentenced to 15 months in prison after being found guilty of mail fraud related to abusing a performance incentive rewards program, causing a loss of $1.2 million to a company. Following his prison term, Barry Cummings will also serve two years of supervised release and pay restitution exceeding $1.2 million.
Court documents reveal that Barry Cummings, aged 52, admitted guilt to the accusation of mail fraud. He was involved with an energy management company's rewards initiative, designed to motivate non-employee resellers, contractors, and others to sell the company's products. Participants reported sales to accumulate points, redeemable for airline vouchers, hotel stays, gift cards, and electronics.
Cummings joined a Lenexa, Kansas, business in 2017, enrolling in the rewards program. He admitted to devising a prolonged scheme, submitting false claims through the rewards site to fraudulently reflect sales of the company's offerings, none of which he sold.
Since his termination from the Lenexa business in April 2018, Cummings continued to access the rewards site using his previous business email. During a 12-hour period in November 2018, he submitted 834 fake invoices, garnering more than 2.8 million points. Throughout 2019, he lodged 5,543 false claims, obtaining 22.5 million points and receiving over 2,000 rewards, culminating in a $1,233,024 loss for the victim company.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) led the investigation, receiving substantial cooperation from the affected energy company.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Huschka.