Edward Porta
Encyclopedia
Edward Porta was an Argentinian textile
trader
based in the area of Spartanburg, South Carolina
. He pleaded guilty to a federal charge of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. Department of Agriculture
of more than $400,000. In February 2008, Porta escaped
from the minimum security
camp at the U.S. Penitentiary in Lee County
, Virginia
and was profiled on America's Most Wanted
.
ers of cotton to compete against large corporations. As president of Porta Textiles and Porta Technologies, he acted as both the importer and the exporter, according to the police. Along with money he defrauded from the government, police said that Porta also swindled banks and other businesses of over $2 million. After his arrest, Porta said that he moved around various parts of the United States and Latin America during his life.
. On May 2, 2007, the court in Asheville, North Carolina
sentenced Porta to 38 months at the U.S. Penitentiary in Lee County
, Virginia
. He was ordered to pay $2.9 million restitution
.
Porta was assigned federal inmate register number 18862-058. Authorities believe Porta had walked away from the minimum security
camp at the penitentiary when he turned up missing during a 4 p.m. count on February 25, 2008. He had been placed in the low security area and was given a significant amount of freedom because he had been convicted of a business-related white-collar crime
. He was scheduled to have been released on April 15, 2010. Police stated that he is difficult to track because he has ties to many locations and that he could be anywhere in the United States or Latin America. Porta remains a fugitive
profiled on America's Most Wanted
.
Textile
A textile or cloth is a flexible woven material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw fibres of wool, flax, cotton, or other material to produce long strands...
trader
Merchant
A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
based in the area of Spartanburg, South Carolina
Spartanburg, South Carolina
thgSpartanburg is the largest city in and the county seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. It is the second-largest city of the three primary cities in the Upstate region of South Carolina, and is located northwest of Columbia, west of Charlotte, and about northeast of...
. He pleaded guilty to a federal charge of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. Department of Agriculture
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture is the United States federal executive department responsible for developing and executing U.S. federal government policy on farming, agriculture, and food...
of more than $400,000. In February 2008, Porta escaped
Prison escape
A prison escape or prison break is the act of an inmate leaving prison through unofficial or illegal ways. Normally, when this occurs, an effort is made on the part of authorities to recapture them and return them to their original detainers...
from the minimum security
Minimum Security
Minimum Security is a comic strip written and illustrated by Stephanie McMillan. It began in 1999, appearing in several alternative weeklies...
camp at the U.S. Penitentiary in Lee County
United States Penitentiary, Lee
United States Penitentiary, Lee is a prison operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. It is located in the Lee County Industrial Park in unincorporated Lee County, Virginia, near Pennington Gap, off U.S. Route 58 at the intersection of State Route 638. The facility is east of Jonesville...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and was profiled on America's Most Wanted
America's Most Wanted
America's Most Wanted is an American television program produced by 20th Television, and was the longest-running program of any kind in the history of the Fox Television Network until it was announced on May 16, 2011 that the series was canceled after twenty-three years, with the final episode...
.
Background
Porta was married and divorced four times, and has two children. He has five siblings who he claims he did not have contact with for 40 years, according to police.Textile business
Porta began his career working for his father's textile business. Police stated that he plotted to take advantage of federal programs such as the Export Credit Guarantee Program, intended by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to assist small U.S. and foreign exportExport
The term export is derived from the conceptual meaning as to ship the goods and services out of the port of a country. The seller of such goods and services is referred to as an "exporter" who is based in the country of export whereas the overseas based buyer is referred to as an "importer"...
ers of cotton to compete against large corporations. As president of Porta Textiles and Porta Technologies, he acted as both the importer and the exporter, according to the police. Along with money he defrauded from the government, police said that Porta also swindled banks and other businesses of over $2 million. After his arrest, Porta said that he moved around various parts of the United States and Latin America during his life.
Incarceration and escape
Porta pleaded guilty on December 20, 2005 to the charge of conspiracy to defraud the U.S. Department of Agriculture in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North CarolinaUnited States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina
The United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina is a Federal district court which covers the western third of North Carolina....
. On May 2, 2007, the court in Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville is a city in and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the 11th largest city in North Carolina. The City is home to the United States National Climatic Data Center , which is the world's largest active...
sentenced Porta to 38 months at the U.S. Penitentiary in Lee County
United States Penitentiary, Lee
United States Penitentiary, Lee is a prison operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. It is located in the Lee County Industrial Park in unincorporated Lee County, Virginia, near Pennington Gap, off U.S. Route 58 at the intersection of State Route 638. The facility is east of Jonesville...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. He was ordered to pay $2.9 million restitution
Restitution
The law of restitution is the law of gains-based recovery. It is to be contrasted with the law of compensation, which is the law of loss-based recovery. Obligations to make restitution and obligations to pay compensation are each a type of legal response to events in the real world. When a court...
.
Porta was assigned federal inmate register number 18862-058. Authorities believe Porta had walked away from the minimum security
Minimum Security
Minimum Security is a comic strip written and illustrated by Stephanie McMillan. It began in 1999, appearing in several alternative weeklies...
camp at the penitentiary when he turned up missing during a 4 p.m. count on February 25, 2008. He had been placed in the low security area and was given a significant amount of freedom because he had been convicted of a business-related white-collar crime
White-collar crime
Within the field of criminology, white-collar crime has been defined by Edwin Sutherland as "a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his occupation" . Sutherland was a proponent of Symbolic Interactionism, and believed that criminal behavior was...
. He was scheduled to have been released on April 15, 2010. Police stated that he is difficult to track because he has ties to many locations and that he could be anywhere in the United States or Latin America. Porta remains a fugitive
Fugitive
A fugitive is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from private slavery, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals...
profiled on America's Most Wanted
America's Most Wanted
America's Most Wanted is an American television program produced by 20th Television, and was the longest-running program of any kind in the history of the Fox Television Network until it was announced on May 16, 2011 that the series was canceled after twenty-three years, with the final episode...
.
External links
- Case #1:05cr239 - United States of America v. Edward Porta
- Wanted: Porta, Edward - arrest warrant at InterpolInterpolInterpol, whose full name is the International Criminal Police Organization – INTERPOL, is an organization facilitating international police cooperation...