Man Who Paid Bankruptcy Trustee With Bogus Checks Sentenced To 36 Months In Prison

CINCINNATI – Todd William Klein, 49, of Cincinnati was sentenced in U.S .District Court to 36 months in prison for obstruction of justice for using bogus checks to pay the trustee in his bankruptcy case.

Carter M. Stewart, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Edward J. Hanko, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) announced the sentence imposed today by Chief U.S. District Judge Susan J. Dlott.

According to court documents, Klein filed for bankruptcy in May 2011. A trustee was responsible for collecting payments from Klein and distributing the money to creditors. In September, Klein paid the trustee two checks, each in the amount of $3,275. He later admitted to an investigator with the Springdale Police Department that he created the checks on his computer using an account number from a closed account and paper he purchased at an office supply store.

Klein pleaded guilty on June 15, 2012. Judge Dlott ordered the sentence for obstruction to be served concurrently with his sentence for violating his supervised release in connection with his conviction in 2004 on charges of transportation of stolen vehicles and bank fraud.

U.S. Attorney Stewart commended the investigation by the FBI and Senior Litigation Counsel Anne L. Porter, who represented the United States in the case.