In April 2024 William Dawson, 52, of Connecticut, pleaded guilty to one count of interstate transportation of property taken by fraud. Today a federal judge sentenced William to five years of probation, with one year of home confinement. The judge also ordered William to pay restitution for his crime.
According to the U.S. District Attorney’s Office, William used a bogus check to buy 170 Queen Elizabeth II Canadian Gold Maple Leaf Coins (valued around $290,000) from a decedent’s estate in Shrewsbury, Mass. William then pawned the coins at two pawn shops in Rhode Island, raking in a total of $115,536. Police arrested William about 8 months later.