A former employee of a credit union in Winnie, Texas, has been sentenced to 34 months in federal prison for his involvement in a bank fraud conspiracy, according to Acting U.S. Attorney Abe McGlothin, Jr. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Marcia A. Crone on April 29, 2025.
Billy Ray Thomas, Jr., 40, had pleaded guilty to the charges and was also ordered to pay $1,363,825.18 in restitution. The fraud came to light when a member of the Neches Federal Credit Union reported unauthorized loans on their account in September 2018. This was followed by similar complaints from nearly 30 members, all linked to Thomas, who worked as an assistant branch manager.
Court documents revealed that Thomas conspired with another individual to commit bank fraud by listing family members and acquaintances as borrowers without their knowledge or consent. Victims reported that they either did not sign the related documents, signed them electronically without reviewing them, or signed them physically without understanding the implications.
Thomas, who started at NFCU in Beaumont in 2005 and rose to the assistant branch manager position, resigned on September 18, 2018. His fraudulent activities resulted in losses exceeding $1 million.
The investigation was led by the FBI's Beaumont Field Office and the Beaumont Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Reynaldo P. Morin prosecuted the case.
