A man accused of stealing thousands of dollars from women he met on internet dating sites will serve seven years in prison and another 13 on probation, authorities said Wednesday.
John Martin Hill, 34, has pleaded guilty to one count of theft by taking and one count of perjury, Gwinnett County District Attorney’s Office spokesman Dan Mayfield confirmed to AJC.com.
In May, Martin was arrested in Tennessee after scamming an Alpharetta woman he met on Match.com out of more than $80,000, police said.
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Hill told the woman he was a millionaire and convinced her they were in love. Within a week of meeting on the internet dating site, they agreed to marry, Gwinnett police said. The cash was intended to go toward the purchase of their first home.
Once the money changed hands, however, the woman never heard from him again, police spokeswoman Cpl. Michele Pihera said at the time.
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“During their short romance, he convinced her that they were in love and wanted to buy a house together,” she said. “They went house-hunting and selected a home they were interested in.”
The woman thought her $80,000 contribution would help with a down payment and buy the couple some furniture. She didn’t know Hill was already living in an apartment in Duluth with another woman and a child, AJC.com previously reported.
After his arrest, investigators heard from several other women who said they were in a relationship with Hill or knew others who were, Pihera said.
While investigating Hill, police learned that he changed his name more than five times in the past three years and that he’s accused of committing similar acts in Virginia, Delaware, Maryland and New Jersey.
It wasn’t immediately clear Wednesday if he still faces charges in those states.
Gwinnett police said Hill formerly went by the name "Gregory Hill." A search of that name leads to a slew of websites, news articles and a Facebook page claiming that Gregory Hill took money from young women after advertising a job on craigslist.com.
Some of the results, including one story about Gregory Hill's arrest in New Jersey, are from as early as 2011.
Hill was also ordered to pay his Alpharetta victim $83,500 in restitution and sign over a white BMW that he allegedly purchased with the money he took from her.
He’s prohibited from ever creating an online dating profile again, prosecutors said.
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