Ark. man pleads guilty to Webster County bank fraud scheme

An Arkansas man pleaded guilty in federal court yesterday to leading a bank fraud conspiracy to cash nearly $160,000 at Webster County banks and other areas.

Phillip Daren Shockey, 49, of Crawford, Ark., admitted to a charge contained in an August indictment. Terms of the plea dictate Shockey must pay a $159,842 money judgement, representing the proceeds of the scheme he orchestrated with the help of co-defendants, according to a news release from the office of Tammy Dickinson, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri.

Between July 31, 2013, and Feb. 28, 2014, Shockey and at least 12 co-conspirators passed and attempted to pass at least 51 fraudulent checks.

To accomplish the scheme, Shockey admitted he and others stole mail, printed counterfeit checks, passed those checks with fake identification and created at least five fictitious businesses to conceal the deposits and withdrawals of counterfeit checks, according to the release.

Investigators found computers, printers, scanners, cellphones, thumb drives, stolen mail and software in Shockey’s possession used to produce fraudulent ID and checks. Shockey hired co-conspirators to run the checks drawn on the accounts of bank customers.

Under federal statutes, Shockey could face up to 30 years in federal prison without parole and a fine of up to $1 million. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled following the presentence investigation by the U.S. Probation Office, according to the release.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Abram McGull II. It was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service’s Financial Crimes Task Force, the U.S. Postal Service Criminial Investigations unit and state and city law officers from Springfield, the state of Missouri, Jasper County, Webster County, Greene County, Columbia, Blue Springs, Monett, Pierce City, St. Clair, Rolla, and Catoosa and Tulsa, Okla.