Real Estate Developer Sentenced To 30 Months Imprisonment For Destination Ventures Fraud Scheme

Little Rock - Christopher R. Thyer, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas; announced Roger Stephen Clary, age 61, of Little Rock was sentenced by United States District Judge J. Leon Holmes to 30 months in federal prison to be followed by two years of supervised release. Special conditions were imposed on his supervised release to include: cooperation with the collection of DNA; prohibition on the possession of any firearm, ammunition, destructive device or dangerous weapon; and disclosure of financial information to probation officer upon request. The special conditions also state he may not obtain any new lines of credit. Judge Holmes ordered Clary to pay $1,595,000 in restitution to the Banc of America Leasing Corporation (BALC).Clary was ordered to report to the Bureau of Prisons by Monday, March 10, 2014.

Clary was indicted July 7, 2010, and on February 7, 2013, pled guilty to mail fraud. Clary created a company called Destination Ventures which was to purchase, custom outfit and lease buses. Clary obtained a loan from BALC to fund the purchase and outfitting of the buses. The loan was approved and entered into on May 8, 2008. The following day, Clary requested that BALC distribute a portion of the loan proceeds to purchase and outfit the buses. However, on the same day, Clary directed the vendor who was to outfit the buses to redistribute the funds once the vendor received them. The vendor complied with the directives from Clary. Consequently, $1,595,000 of the loan proceeds were paid to companies in which Clary had a financial interest but which had no involvement in the purchase, custom outfitting, or leasing of the buses as intended by the loan agreement. The mail fraud count charges Clary with later falsely certifying to BALC that the buses had been custom outfitted.

This investigation was conducted by the Little Rock Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Angela Jegley prosecuted this case for the United States.