Illinois Farmer Inflates Claim for Equipment He Never Owned

Evidence presented by the government showed that in August 2015, Mowen and co-defendant David Speer traveled to Mississippi to buy farm equipment. Speer negotiated the purchase price on a New Holland 8970 tractor and a Case IH 2388 combine, and Mowen paid a local farmer about $30,000 cash for the machinery. After the purchase, Mowen added a tractor and combine to his insurance policy at an estimated value of $108,000. Mowen and Speer then agreed that Speer would set the tractor and combine on fire, the prosecution said, and on Oct. 1, 2015, Speer did so.