News Release
U.S. Department of Justice
United States Attorney
District of Rhode Island
April 23, 2008
Coventry man admits bank fraud
Michael R. Robitaille, of Coventry, pleaded guilty today to bank fraud, admitting that he kited fraudulent checks and transfers among seven accounts at three different banks and tried to obtain about $92,000 from two of the banks. The banks denied all but about $23,000 of the fraudulent transactions.
United States Attorney Robert Clark Corrente and Thomas Powers, Resident Agent in Charge of the Providence office of the United States Secret Service, announced the guilty plea, which Robitaille entered before Chief U.S. District Court Judge Mary M. Lisi in U.S. District Court, Providence.
At the plea hearing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter F. Neronha said the government could prove that, in May 2006, Robitaille opened a checking account at a Massachusetts branch of Commerce Bank Trust with a $25.00 cash deposit. Over the next several weeks, Robitaille opened two checking accounts and a savings account at different Rhode Island branches of Domestic Bank, and a checking account and two savings accounts at BankRI. Depositing only $11 in real money, he inflated the value of the accounts by depositing worthless checks drawn against previous accounts, or making fraudulent transfers between checking and savings accounts.
Robitaille then made a series of cash withdrawals, or wrote checks to third parties against the various accounts at Domestic Bank and BankRI. In all, Robitaille tried to obtain
$92,002 from Domestic Bank and BankRI, after depositing a total of $26 in real money in all three banks. Domestic Bank and BankRI denied payment on most of the checks, losing a total of $22,985 between them, mostly to cash withdrawals.
In June 2006, about a month after Robitaille launched his scheme, a Secret Service agent questioned him, and Robitaille admitted the fraud.
Robitaille, 25, pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud. Judge Lisi scheduled sentencing for July 18. The maximum penalty for bank fraud is 30 years imprisonment and a $1,000,000 fine. The government did not agree to any sentencing recommendation in exchange for the plea. Robitaille is detained in state custody.