BANK PRESIDENT SENTENCED TO FEDERAL PRISON FOR 6 YEARS
Cleghorn Defrauded Hometown Bank in Villa Rica of almost $2.5 Million
NEWNAN, GA – S. POPE CLEGHORN, JR., 39, of Villa Rica, Georgia, had been sentenced today by usa District Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr. to provide 6 years in federal jail on costs of bank fraud RUSSELL that is.Р’ T, 53, of Destin, Florida, formerly pleaded responsible to conspiring with CLEGHORN to defraud the lender.
United states of america Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said of this situation, Corrupt bank insiders wreak havoc in both the organizations they provide as well as on the countrys economy because it strives to recover.Р’ Their place of trust offers them the required access to cause tremendous harm plus the power to conceal their crimes once committed.Р’ This defendant, the President and CEO of the Georgia bank, made bad loans to a crony whom later admitted he paid money kickbacks in return for the unique therapy.Р’ for decades, the defendant took extraordinary efforts to protect up their fraudulence with phony papers and lies, however with todays jail phrase, he’s got now been delivered to justice.
Jon T. Rymer, the Inspector General of this Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, stated, Today’s sentencing reflects fitting punishment for a previous banker whom violated the trust of their community by participating in unlawful activity.Р’ Such behavior that is fraudulent the overall wellness regarding the bank operating system, in addition to FDIC OIG continues to pursue such offenders, into the interest of ensuring the security and soundness associated with country’s banking institutions.
Р’ CLEGHORN had been sentenced to 6 years in jail become followed closely by five several years of supervised launch, and ordered to cover restitution of $2,424,301.67 to SunTrust Bank, which acquired Hometown Bank in 2008.Р’ he had been additionally bought to do 80 hours of community solution. CLEGHORN had been convicted of those fees on September 6, 2011, after pleading Р’ that is guilty pleaded responsible to conspiracy on February 17, 2011, cooperated using the research, and it is planned become sentenced on December 15, 2011, at 10 a.m., before Judge Batten.
Relating to united states of america Attorney Yates, the fees along with other information presented in court:Р’ After becoming the President and ceo of Hometown Bank of Villa Rica in 2002, CLEGHORN defrauded the lender by issuing numerous loans to LONGER then misappropriating the funds from those loans, all with no knowledge or authorization of Hometown Banks loan committee.Р’ as an element of their scheme, CLEGHORN directed that the minutes of loan committee conferences be falsified to point that loans to LONGER was in fact authorized whenever in reality the committee hadn’t authorized, and wasn’t also alert to, the loans.Р’ Based on LONGER, he paid CLEGHORN over $130,000 in money kickbacks to make the loans.
The financial institution fraudulence fees include two loans CLEGHORN approved for LONG.Р’ the initial ended up being a $1 million development loan given in February 2005 for very long to build up a subdivision in Wetumpka, Alabama.Р’ The loan needed LONGER to submit invoices, or draw demands, showing that expenses had been become incurred for work with the subdivision, indicating the task that has been to be performed, and saying how much money required for the work.Р’ At CLEGHORNs direction, LONGER presented fraudulent draw demands to Hometown Bank, falsely claiming which he required cash for roads, storm drains, lights, along with other jobs which were never ever built during the Wetumpka subdivision.Р’ CLEGHORN and LONGER rather received funds from the mortgage for purposes apart from the subdivision and utilized the amount of money to settle other loans LONG held at Hometown Bank.Р’ CLEGHORN additionally received funds from the mortgage to settle an individual bank card.Р’ even though the false draw demands had been dated 2005, these people were actually prepared and submitted to CLEGHORN in 2007 once the FDIC was at Hometown Bank doing a bank examination.Р’ CLEGHORN asked LONGER to produce the phony draw needs to increase the file through the assessment.
The loan that is second a $1.8 million domestic loan CLEGHORN authorized for very long to construct a individual residence in Destin, Florida.Р’ LONGER later on obtained a moment home loan in the residence through another bank.Р’ minus the understanding of Hometown Banks loan committee, CLEGHORN signed and filed a Subordination of Mortgage because of the county clerk in Florida subordinating Hometown Banks loan to another banking institutions.Р’ That filing caused Hometown Bank pop over here to get rid of its concern place in the eventuality of foreclosure.Р’ CLEGHORN did not destination a copy for the subordination document in Hometown Bank’s files, and soon after attempted to conceal it from Hometown Bank therefore the FDIC.Р’ through the January 2007 FDIC assessment, whenever FDIC officials repeatedly tried to fax a duplicate associated with the Subordination of Mortgage into the bank, CLEGHORN advertised that the fax device had not been working.Р’ In truth, but, CLEGHORN instructed their assistant to destroy the document whenever it arrived through from the fax device, however lied to your examiners concerning the fax.
This situation had been examined by Special Agents of this Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation workplace of Inspector General.
Assistant united states of america Attorney Stephen H. McClain prosecuted the scenario.