Former Bank of Billings president sentenced for fraud

The former head officer of the Bank of Billings was sentenced today to 30 months in federal prison without parole for a $413,000 bank fraud and money laundering scheme he devised while president of the company.

Matthew Spillman, 35, of Nixa, also was ordered in federal court to pay $179,952 in restitution to the Bank of Billings and $233,952 to BancInsure, according to a news release from the office of Tammy Dickinson, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri.

While serving as president of the Bank of Billings, Spillman schemed to defraud and embezzle funds from the company from May 20, 2011, until he was suspended on April 13, 2012, and later terminated.

Spillman pleaded guilty last October to bank fraud and money laundering, admitting he caused the bank to grant loans in nominee names but actually keeping the funds for his own use. He also:

• added debt to loans without the borrowers' knowledge, converting the additional funds for his own use;
• advanced funds on customers' lines of credit, converting the funds for his own use;
• used a bank credit card to pay for personal expenses;
• stole customers' loan payments and converted them for his own use; and
• caused the bank to issue cashier's checks without depositing funds to cover them.

In his guilty plea, Spillman acknowledged the total financial harm done to the bank was $413,905, according to the release.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven Mohlhenrich and was investigated by the FBI, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Office of Inspector General and Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation.

Bank of Billings is now led by President and CEO Mark Jenkins. It operates one branch each in Billings and Marionville.[[In-content Ad]]