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Press Release

Charlotte Man Sentenced To 21 Months For Check Fraud Conspiracy

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of North Carolina
The Defendant Defrauded Financial Institutions Of More Than $133,000 In Two Months

CHARLOTTE, NC B A Charlotte man charged with defrauding financial institutions of more than $133,000 was sentenced today to 21 months in prison, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.  Dezon Montrice Gill, a/k/a “Bentley,” was also ordered by Chief U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney to serve three years under court supervision and to pay $133,940.83 as restitution.

Acting U.S. Attorney Rose is joined in making today’s announcement by Michael Rolin, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the United States Secret Service, Charlotte Field Division.

According to filed documents and today’s sentencing hearing, from about July 1, 2013 to August 21, 2013, Gill orchestrated a check fraud scheme that targeted financial institutions in the Charlotte area.  Court records indicate that Gill executed the scheme by depositing worthless checks into back accounts of FDIC-insured institutions and then used debit cards linked to these bank accounts to purchase money orders and gift reload cards.  According to court records, Gill opened a new account at a bank and used the new “starter” checks to write worthless checks he then deposited into other individuals’ bank accounts.  According to court records, Gill paid the account holders between $1,000 to $2,000 in exchange for using their debit cards to purchase money orders, and Green Dot Moneypack Reload Cards.  Court records show that Gill defrauded financial institutions of more than $133,000 in this manner.  Gill pleaded guilty in January 2015 to one count of financial institution fraud conspiracy and one count of financial institution fraud.

Gill is currently in federal custody and will be transferred to the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon designation of a federal facility.  All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.

The U.S. Secret Service investigated the case.Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth Smith handled the prosecution.

Updated August 4, 2015

Topic
Financial Fraud