Ex-Eagle Fryar gets five-year prison term
Former Philadelphia Eagle Irving Fryar and his 74-year-old mother got a break compared to what prosecutors wanted when they were sentenced Friday for their roles in a $1.2 million mortgage scheme involving seven lending institutions.
Former Philadelphia Eagle Irving Fryar and his 74-year-old mother got a break compared to what prosecutors wanted when they were sentenced Friday for their roles in a $1.2 million mortgage scheme involving seven lending institutions.
Fryar, now the pastor of a Mount Holly church he founded, was sentenced to five years in prison after he was convicted of conspiracy and theft by deception in connection with false wage information that he and his mother provided on mortgage applications submitted in rapid succession in late 2009 and early 2010.
His mother, Allene McGhee,, formerly of Willingboro, got three years' probation.
Each had faced a maximum sentence of 10 years.
Deputy State Attorney General Mark Kurzawa recommended that each receive seven years and that they be ordered to make restitution.
But in a Mount Holly courtroom, Superior Court Judge Jeanne T. Covert said she had to weigh many factors. McGhee, of Willingboro, suffers from diabetes, high blood pressure, and also post-traumatic stress disorder from her trial in August, Covert said. She had no previous criminal record and did not fully comprehend the scheme that her son and William Barksdale, a co-conspirator, had asked her to join, the judge said.
"Like any mother, she had listened to her son, who was successful in life both in the NFL and as a pastor," Covert said.
Barksdale, a former mortgage broker, had testified that he and Fryar had used McGhee to file the mortgage applications because she had good credit. Barksdale said Fryar needed the money to pay debts. Later, when the scheme collapsed, McGhee lost her house in a foreclosure.
Mark Fury, McGhee's lawyer, said he was "very grateful for the judge's careful and well-reasoned analysis" and pleased with the decision to give McGhee probation. But he said it was bittersweet for McGhee to see her son sentenced to prison.
Neither Fryar nor McGhee addressed Covert before sentencing and none of their 30 supporters spoke in court, though many had submitted letters. After the sentencing, Fryar and McGhee showed no emotion.
Before Fryar was placed in handcuffs, he spoke briefly to one of his two sons, London, who attended the sentencing with his sister, one of Fryar's two daughters. Also present were members of his congregation, the New Jerusalem House of God.
Fryar, 53, hung his head as he walked past a row of photographers while being escorted from the courtroom. His lawyer, Michael Gilberti, said Fryar likely would spend the night in the Burlington County Jail and then be transferred to the Central Reception and Assignment Facility in Trenton on Saturday to await placement in a prison. Gilberti said Fryar will apply to the state Intensive Supervision Program, which allows eligible offenders to serve a few months of their sentence and to receive supervision in the community. He also plans an appeal.
Elie Honig, director of the Division of Criminal Justice for the state Attorney General's Office, said in a statement that Fryar deserved punishment. "This was not a situation where Fryar and his mother simply made a few misrepresentations on a mortgage application. They participated in an elaborate and devious scheme . . . This was a major theft case, and it rightfully has landed Fryar in state prison."
Before the trial, prosecutors had offered Fryar a plea agreement of a five-year sentence. He had faced a sentence of five to 10 years.
Covert said the minimum sentence was appropriate because Fryar had lived a mostly "law-abiding life" and the fraud was "aberrational." Though the prosecutor said Fryar had a record, the judge said the record was insignificant and long ago. Court records show he was charged with unlawful possession of a weapon in 1988.
"He got two Ph.D.s and currently is a pastor . . . and I apply heavy weight to that," Covert said. She also considered his "illustrious career in the NFL," but decided he should not receive probation because, compared to his mother, he had "a better understanding of what he was engaging in and the consequences" of the conspiracy.
Fryar, who was a Pro Bowl wide receiver five times, retired from the NFL in 2001 after 17 years with four teams.
After the sentencing, Joann Conwell, a deaconness at Fryar's church, said the judge had been fair. "Praise God that [Fryar's] mother didn't have to do any time," she said. As for Fryar, "he'll be home in a blink of an eye," she predicted.
Covert said a hearing will be held next month to determine restitution. Though the prosecutors said the scheme had defrauded banks of more than $1 million, they said Fryar had received about $300,000 of that money. Covert urged prosecutors and the defense to come up with a settlement that is "realistic" and considers Fryar's and McGhee's "ability to pay."
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