Jury convicts Kansas man of vehicle fraud scheme

TOPEKA, KAN. – A federal jury convicted a Kansas man of defrauding car dealerships, financial institutions, and title loan companies. 

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Montressa “Monty” Cunningham, 42, of Junction City was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, seven counts of bank fraud, three counts of wire fraud, and five counts of money laundering.

Beginning about December 2018, Cunningham applied for loans to purchase vehicles from Kansas dealerships. He submitted applications to financial institutions using other people’s social security numbers, false residential addresses, and counterfeit pay stubs showing fabricated monthly incomes, places of employment, and lengths of employment. As a result, Cunningham received seven vehicle loans totaling approximately $264,000. 

As part of the scheme, once Cunningham received the titles, he altered the documents to remove the lien holder’s name and address. He used the altered titles to register the vehicles in either Kansas or Georgia to receive clear titles. Cunningham then either sold the vehicles for cash or used the clear titles as collateral for cash loans. Title loan companies and individuals who purchased the vehicles paid Cunningham approximately $85,010 in cash.

The U.S. Secret Service and the Kansas Department of Revenue, Office of Special Investigations are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sara Walton and Lindsey Debenham are prosecuting the case.

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