Orlando, Florida U.S. District Judge Paul G. Byron today sentenced Mrugesh G. Patel (38, Edgewater) to 18 months in federal prison for bank fraud. The Court also entered a money judgment in the amount of $405,087.99, the proceeds of the offense. Patel pleaded guilty on Dec. 19, 2016.
According to court documents, between February 2011 and December 2012, Patel participated in a scheme to defraud federally insured banks, including TD Bank and Centerstate Bank. Specifically, he opened numerous bank accounts under the names of various Florida-based companies that he had established. He then used these accounts to make bulk deposits of fraudulent bank drafts made payable to his companies. The bank drafts were made using the unauthorized account information of other individuals, businesses, and entities. Patel also made false representations to bank representatives when he opened the accounts and during the time period that he was making the deposits.
Patel's fraud scheme caused more than $1,352,956 in losses to victims whose account information was used to create the fraudulent bank drafts. He used some of this money for personal expenditures and to pay third parties. During the investigation, law enforcement seized over $400,000 in illegal proceeds from bank accounts that Patel controlled.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew C. Searle and Nicole Andrejko.
--DOJ Middle District of Florida
Source: U.S. Secret Service