Richard Singer Convicted of Soliciting Arson

OAKLAND, CA—Richard Earl Singer was sentenced today to 27 months in prison and ordered to pay a $60,000 fine for soliciting a crime of violence—namely arson—United States Attorney Melinda Haag announced.

Singer pleaded guilty on June 22, 2011, to solicitation of a crime of violence. According to the plea agreement, Singer admitted to soliciting and inducing others to burn the Hotel Menlo, a residential hotel he owned at 344 13th Street in Oakland. At the time of the offense, in January 2011, a restaurant and a nail salon operated out of the first floor of the building. The defendant provided a check in the amount of $1,500 for the materials necessary to commit the arson. The defendant admitted that he had agreed to pay a total of $65,000 after the Hotel Menlo was successfully burned down.

Singer, 45, of Tiburon, was initially arrested on Jan. 14, 2011, and charged by complaint with solicitation of arson in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 373(a). He waived indictment by a grand jury before pleading guilty.

The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Court Judge Claudia Wilken. Judge Wilken also sentenced the defendant to a three-year period of supervised release. The defendant is in custody serving his sentence.

Keslie Stewart is the Assistant U.S. Attorney who prosecuted the case with the assistance of Janice Pagsanjan, Kathleen Turner, and Noble Hughes. The case was jointly investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Further Information:

Case #: CR 11-00304 CW

A copy of this press release may be found on the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s website at www.usdoj.gov/usao/can.