Two sentenced in $821,000 fake trucking invoice scheme carried out at Port of Savannah

Two Georgia men were sentenced to prison in connection with a scheme to defraud a national logistics and transportation company that served the Port of Savannah.

Philip Charles Smith, 41, was sentenced to 27 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, according to an April 3 statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia.

Antonio J. Evans Sr., 41, was sentenced to 13 months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release.

Smith and Evans must also pay a combined $821,899 in restitution.

Both Smith and Evans pleaded guilty to Wire Fraud charges.

Officials say that Smith worked for a national logistics and transportation company that served the Port of Savannah. Smith was responsible for awarding contracts on behalf of the company to third-party carriers to move freight from the port to other destinations.

Authorities say that between July 2021 to August 2024, “Smith devised a scheme in which he used his employee access to create fake freight-hauling jobs that he assigned to Evans. The company then would unwittingly pay Evans for work that didn’t exist, and Evans would kick back a portion of the funds to Smith.”

The scheme cost Smith’s employer $821,899 over the course of three years.

“Schemes like this exploit positions of trust and undermine the integrity of critical supply chain operations supporting the Port of Savannah,” said Brad Snider, Senior Supervisory Resident Agent of FBI Georgia’s Savannah office. “The FBI is committed to holding accountable those who use fraud and deception for personal gain, and we will continue working with our partners to protect businesses from financial crimes that impact commerce and the broader economy.”

“Private companies that serve the transportation needs for the Port of Savannah, like all companies, deserve to expect honesty and integrity from their employees and service providers,” said U.S. Attorney Heap. “Philip Smith betrayed the trust of his employer in order to funnel fake work to Antonio Evans so the two of them could line their pockets, and they’re now being held accountable for their dishonesty.”

This case was investigated by the FBI.