May 21--A Naperville man who worked as a military contractor in Afghanistan was sentenced to a year in prison Thursday for stealing more than $330,000 worth of high-end computer equipment from the air base where he was stationed.
Timothy Maurer, 51, had faced up to about 2 1/2; years behind bars after pleading guilty in January to one count of felony theft of government property.
In handing down the sentence, U.S. District Judge Robert Dow said the crime was "significant because it occurred within a war zone" and "because it was committed by someone the military entrusted."
Maurer was also ordered to pay restitution of $156,000.
As an employee of the large government contractor Raytheon Corp., Maurer was assigned to Shindand Air Base in western Afghanistan, where the U.S. Air Force 445th Air Expeditionary Advisory Squadron is headquartered, according to prosecutors.
Beginning in December 2013, Maurer stole from secure areas of the base more than 150 items of computer and communications equipment, including laptops, cellphones, computer switches, batteries, power cables and electronic storage devices, according to his plea agreement with prosecutors.
On at least one occasion, Maurer forced open a lock to gain entry to a storage container, while other equipment was taken from locations where it was being used, according to the plea.
Maurer admitted in his plea that he communicated via email in January 2014 with vendors in the U.S. who specialized in reselling high-end computer equipment. Maurer packed boxes with much of the stolen merchandise and shipped them to the vendors, who sold the equipment for about $150,000 and paid him through the online service PayPal.
An additional $180,000 worth of equipment was either intercepted by investigators or recovered from Maurer's living quarters on the base, according to the plea agreement.
There was no indication in court records that any sensitive military information was compromised in the scheme.
jmeisner@tribpub.com
