District attorney challenges ‘lenient’ sentence for Louisiana twin brothers in money laundering scheme

BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) — 18th Judicial District Attorney Tony Clayton has appealed the sentence for the McCormick brothers in the First Circuit Court of Appeal, who faced money laundering charges.

In Dec. 2024, Robert and Thomas McCormick, both 51, were found guilty of multiple charges, including:

• Conspiracy to commit money laundering.
• Money laundering.
• Conspiracy to commit malfeasance in office.
• Conspiracy to commit filing false public documents.
• Conspiracy to commit felony theft.
• Conspiracy to commit prohibited splitting of profits.

On May 9, they were sentenced to three years of probation as well as paying restitution for $214,262 to the State Fire Marshal’s Office, $5,000 each to the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s Office, and paying court fees.

Clayton believes the sentencing was too “lenient.” The district attorney’s office asked for jail time for the brothers and almost $850,000 in restitution. In addition, the Legislative Auditor’s Office requested almost $98,000 in restitution.

In a press release, Clayton mentioned that similar cases received more “just sentences.”

“The McCormick brothers made over $800,000 off their money laundering scheme and milked the state and its citizens of hundreds of thousands of dollars,” said Clayton. “Yet they were sentenced to only probation and to pay only $214,000 in restitution. We feel this sentence is excessively lenient for these crimes. They profited greatly from this illegal scheme. We feel strongly that the sentence should reflect the severity of these crimes.”

According to the DA, Robert was an employee of the Louisiana State Fire Marshal’s Office and Thomas was an attorney. The pair worked together to buy emergency supplies at a lower price and bid the items to the state for a higher price. These supplies included water, food, ice, and portable restrooms during state emergencies after hurricanes.

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