Oklahoma Man Suspended From FCC Lifeline Program

The FCC Enforcement Bureau notified Wes Yui Chew, Icon Telecom, that he has been suspended from participating in the Lifeline program and the agency is starting a debarment procedure. In April, the Edmond, Oklahoma, man was ordered to serve 48 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and pay a fine of $117,166.48, which is the anticipated cost of his federal imprisonment. Chew had pleaded guilty to charges. Icon participated in the Lifeline program from July 2011 until September 2013, the bureau said Tuesday. “During that time period, you were the sole owner and president of Icon,” the bureau said. On June 12, 2014, you pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering for transferring $20,455,829.10 from an Icon bank account to a personal bank account, despite knowing that Icon had thousands fewer customers than it had reported to the Commission.” As part of the federal action against Chew, he also agreed to forfeit $27 million seized during the investigation, the Department of Justice said.