PITTSBURGH, PA - After deliberating one hour, a federal jury of five men and seven women found Frederick H. Banks guilty of five counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft, United States Attorney Scott W. Brady announced today.
Frederick H. Banks, 52, was tried before Chief United States District Judge Mark R. Hornak in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
According to Assistant United States Attorneys Shaun E. Sweeney and Christopher M. Cook, who prosecuted the case, the evidence presented at trial established that Banks attempted to defraud Forex, a retail foreign exchange company of at least $264,000 in the scheme. The evidence at trial established that, during a four-week period in 2013, Banks submitted false and fraudulent account applications to Forex in an effort to use those money to kite funds from Forex to Banks’ pre-existing personal bank accounts. As part of the scheme, Banks used the identity information of a former friend in an effort to fraudulently open a Forex account.
Judge Hornak has not yet scheduled the sentencing for Banks. The law provides for a total sentence of 22 years in prison, including a mandatory minimum two years in prison for the identity theft conviction, a fine of $1,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed is based on the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.
Pending sentencing, Banks will remain in custody. Banks has multiple prior felony convictions.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation that led to the prosecution of Frederick H. Banks.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
