Clearfiber CEO Sentenced for Money Laundering

WASHINGTON, March 17, 2025 - Timothy Chad Henson, the founder and CEO of ClearFiber, Inc., a broadband provider in West Virginia, was sentenced to 18 months in prison for money laundering funds from a federal broadband project grant, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for Northern District of West Virginia.

Henson's firm had received a $1.96 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Community Connect Program, intended to provide high-speed internet services to rural areas in Monongalia and Marion Counties.

According to court documents, Henson submitted false invoices to the USDA and fraudulently received over $340,000. He then transferred $322,900 of that amount into another bank account for personal use. Henson has been ordered to pay about $1.4 million in restitution.

ClearFiber, Inc., founded by Henson in 2017, has provided affordable internet services in West Virginia and Pennsylvania, aiming to bridge the digital divide in rural areas.

Henson’s case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service IRS’s Criminal Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Eleanor Hurney. U.S. District Judge Thomas S. Kleeh presided over the case. In addition to paying $1.4 million in restitution, Henson will serve three years of supervised release following his prison sentence. Henson’s bio is here.