A former Nebraska investment advisor who pleaded guilty in June to a bank fraud scheme has been sentenced to prison in the case, according to Investment News.
35-year-old Jesse Hill of Hickman admitted to a scheme to obtain $45 million in loans from 19 different financial institutions. He was sentenced to five years in federal prison by US District Judge Susan Bazis.
Prosecutors said Hill entered into a conspiracy to commit the bank fraud with a businessman from Lincoln, Aaron Marshbanks. The Nebraska Examiner reported the two sought loans from banks across Nebraska and western Iowa that were purportedly for real estate ventures but that much of the money was used to pay off investment losses and earlier fraudulent loans.
Hill operated a hedge fund until 2018 and then organized First SOJO Capital Group LLC, an RIA, in 2019. “The loans were sought in the name of Individual 1 and/or Individual 1’s entities,” according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, referring to Marshbanks. “It was represented that these loans were to be used for real estate investments and the alleged collateral for the loans was an investment account of Individual 1 and/or Individual 1’s entity that was managed by Hill.”
Hill “would falsely represent that no other financial institution had a security interest in these fictitious accounts,” prosecutors said, adding that Hill produced fraudulent financial statements indicating that Marshbanks had sufficient assets to secure the loans.
The loan proceeds “were deposited in a Charles Schwab account, were used to purchase a property in Puerto Rico, and were used to purchase an ownership interest in a PC-12/47E Pilatus Aircraft,” the release states.
“Throughout the process of obtaining or attempting to obtain the loans, Hill and Individual 1 would engage with each financial institution to facilitate the loan process to include meeting with the financial institution in person, communicating by telephone, communicating by text message, or communicating by email,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said. “Hill knew that the representations being made to the financial institutions in order to obtain loans by Individual 1 and/or Individual 1’s entity were false and were being done with the intent to defraud.”
In sentencing Hill, Judge Bazis described his actions as “deliberate and calculated”, and that his actions were “the exact polar opposite” of the reputation he had built as a family man and church leader. “This particular offense would not have been possible without you,” Bazis told Hill.
Assistant U.S. District Attorney Don Kleine had called for a sentence of at least 97 months in prison, while Hill’s lead attorney said that comparable sentences for comparable bank fraud cases nationwide would suggest a prison sentence of 36 to 48 months.
The case was reported to have been one of the largest bank frauds in Nebraska’s history.
The attorneys at Hyman Cotter PC have decades of experience dealing with securities fraud cases and have a deep understanding of how capital markets and financial service firms are intended to work to protect investors. If you think your financial professional or firm engaged in misconduct that caused you investment losses, contact Hyman Cotter PC at 312-291-4600 or through our online contact form for a no-cost evaluation of your matter
