The State : 2 Sentenced in ‘Fusion’ Scam

Two brothers were sentenced to 20 years in prison for running a scam that bilked investors out of $3 million with claims that “high fusion science” could be used to convert weeds and twigs into highly durable building materials. U.S. District Judge Earl Gillam of San Diego imposed the sentence on Walter Gutierrez, 58, and brother Alex, 55, who were convicted in July of 39 counts each of conspiracy and filing false income tax returns. Prosecutors said the brothers perpetrated an elaborate hoax in which they claimed that a revolutionary scientific process would fuse the molecular fibers of organic materials, yielding a cost-competitive product that could be drilled and hammered just like ordinary wood. In fact, the material they showed investors was a synthetic polyester resin that has been around since the 1950s and is very expensive to use.