A skydive instructor in San Joaquin County was found guilty of wire fraud and identity theft relating to courses he offered that he was not authorized to teach, according to U.S. Attorney Phillip Talbert.

Robert Pooley, 49, of Acampo, was a tandem parachute instructor, teaching other skydivers how to jump in tandem with others, which is when two people share the same parachute. 

In 2010, Pooley obtained legitimate ratings as a “tandem examiner” with the U.S. Parachute Association. He then began teaching people who were seeking tandem skydiving certifications. He charged money for these courses at a business located in Acampo.  

In 2015, Pooley’s tandem examiner status was suspended for reasons that prosecutors are not divulging, and he could no longer conduct his courses on his own. According to prosecutors, he continued to do so anyway without authorization, concealing his suspension from other tandem instructor candidates.  As a result, Pooley told students that he was a tandem examiner after his suspension and led them to believe they were legitimately getting their tandem ratings through his courses.  

As part of his scheme, Pooley would use the signature of another legitimate tandem examiner to sign off on the trainings that he himself carried out.  

Pooley took in students from all over the world, such as from the Republic of Korea, to Chile, to Mexico. Tragically, one of his former students fell to their death in 2016 in a tandem skydiving accident with his customer who also perished. This student of Pooley’s had believed he had received certification from someone who was authorized to give it.  

Each student had paid Pooley over $1,000 for these courses, and after the death of the tandem skydiver and their customer, numerous victims of Pooley’s teaching scheme asked for their money back. Pooley did not repay them, leading the students to have to pay for all new courses with a valid instructor.  

Pooley is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 26 and is facing a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000 for each count of wire fraud, as well as a mandatory 2-year sentence for aggravated identity theft.  

This was a federal case because the Federal Aviation Administration regulates skydiving.  

Katy St. Clair got her start in journalism by working in the classifieds department at the East Bay Express during the height of alt weeklies, then sweet talked her way into becoming staff writer, submissions editor, and music editor. She has been a columnist in the East Bay Express, SF Weekly, and the San Francisco Examiner. Starting in 2015, she begrudgingly scaled the inverted pyramid at dailies such as the Vallejo Times-Herald, The Vacaville Reporter, and the Daily Republic. She has her own independent news site and blog that covers the delightfully dysfunctional town of Vallejo, California, where she also collaborates with the investigative team at Open Vallejo. A passionate advocate for people with developmental disabilities, she serves on both the Board of the Arc of Solano and the Arc of California. She lives in Vallejo.