Feds charge Jeffrey Morris, founder of Roxby Development, with wire fraud
Morris arrested and charged Friday after he had planned to leave the country next week; more charges could be coming
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Read the federal criminal complaint against Jeffrey Morris
WHEELING -- Jeffrey James Morris, founder of Roxby Development, was charged Friday with wire fraud, according to a criminal complaint from the U.S. Department of Justice.
According to the federal criminal complaint, Morris, 36, is charged with fraudulently inducing an individual to provide him with funds to renovate the Scottish Rite Cathedral, a building located at the corner of 14th and Byron Streets in East Wheeling. Federal investigators believe that Morris, the managing member and majority owner of Roxby Development LLC, caused an investor to provide him with $350,000 to rehabilitate the Scottish Rite but instead used the funds for other purposes. It is further alleged that Morris misrepresented work performed upon the Cathedral, the status of the historic tax credits, and the amount of rental income from a purported tenant.
The principal purpose of Roxby Development was to acquire and develop real estate in the region, to include the Scottish Rite Cathedral, the McClure House Hotel, and the Mount Carmel Monastery. The Roxby companies received a total of $6.9 million from approximately 20 investors between October 2019 until July 2022.
"Jeffrey Morris made misrepresentations to people in Wheeling, West Virginia, and throughout the country in order to fund a fraudulent scheme," said United States Attorney William Ihlenfeld. "His arrest today brings an end to a ruse in which innocent investors were tricked into providing him with millions of dollars."
According to Ihlenfeld, additional charges will be filed at a later date. Friday’s charge and arrest were necessitated by Morris's plan to travel outside of the United States next week. Morris appeared in federal court this afternoon where he surrendered his passport and then was released under terms and conditions imposed by the court.
The matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service-CI.