Pair charged in BP oil spill settlement scam

FORT MYERS BEACH — A federal grand jury indicted two Fort Myers Beach men for allegedly filing false claims to the British Petroleum Deepwater Horizon oil spill settlement fund.

The grand jury indicted Marque Amason, 49, and William Soong, 27, who submitted claims to the oil spill settlement fund claiming they had sustained losses as boat captains. Neither man was a boat captain, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's office.

Amason faces one count of wire fraud and Soong faces one count of mail fraud. If convicted, each man faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison.

BP has agreed to pay more than $20 billion for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. The spill caused widespread economic losses along the Gulf Coast from Florida to Texas.