Md. man guilty in fraud scheme

A 61-year-old Harford County man pleaded guilty yesterday in U.S. District Court in Baltimore to committing wire fraud in a scheme to bilk 71 companies out of $2.3 million, according to the Maryland U.S. attorney's office.

Michael Murray of Street faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison when he is sentenced Oct. 6, prosecutors said.

Murray was the owner of a business called Chesapeake Supply Inc. on Shannon Drive in Baltimore.

He set up a credit line with a packing company in Miami, prosecutors said, and faxed the company a list of false credit references.

The Miami company then extended Murray a credit line of $50,000, the prosecutors said, and shipped him products.

Prosecutors said he repeated this scheme with several other companies in 2006 and 2007.