A federal grand jury has indicted four people — including two from North Carolina — with a bank fraud scheme involving more than $17 million.
The criminal indictment, unsealed in federal court in Asheville, alleges wire fraud and bank fraud conspiracy, 16 counts of financial institution fraud and four counts of money laundering against:
- Kotto Yaphet Paul, 48, of Waxhaw;
- Latoya Tamieka Ford, 48, of Covington, Georgia;
- Bruce Howard Marko, 64, of Charlotte; and
- Love Norman, 49, of West Palm Beach.
The four indicted, along with co-conspirators, executed a fraudulent loan scheme that defrauded at least 17 federally insured financial institutions of more than $17 million, between 2016 and May 2021, according to the indictment.
Investigators allege in the indictment that the four defendants and their co-conspirators obtained loans from the financial institutions by submitting loan applications with fraudulent information, including false employment and income information, false tax returns, and misrepresentations regarding the applicants’ assets, liabilities and the intended use of the loan proceeds.
They allegedly secured at least 42 fraudulent loans from the victim financial institutions.
Contrary to the alleged stated purpose of the loans, the defendants allegedly used the loan proceeds to purchase real estate, cover unrelated business expenses, make investments, and pay for personal expenditures. The indictment also alleges that the defendants defaulted on most of the loans, resulting in substantial losses to the financial institutions that issued the loans.
Each defendant charged in the indictment has appeared in court on the charges. The bank fraud and wire fraud conspiracy charge carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison. The charge of financial institution fraud carries a prison term of up to 30 years per count, and the money laundering offense has a statutory maximum penalty of up to 10 years in prison for each offense.
Four additional defendants have been convicted of bank fraud conspiracy for their involvement in the scheme. Amrish D. Patel, 45, of Stockbridge, Georgia, was sentenced to 15 months in prison. Dwight A. Peebles Jr., 47, of Chapel Hill, was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Denise Woodard, 56, of Roswell, Georgia, was ordered to serve 36 months in prison, and Derrick L. Harrison, 54, of Greenville, South Carolina, was sentenced to a year and a day in prison.
The defendants were also ordered to pay restitution ranging from $620,000 to more than $3.1 million.