PORTLAND, Ore. — Three Oregon men have been indicted in an alleged scheme that used stolen checks, altered payment information and recruited accomplices to obtain money before financial institutions could detect the fraud, federal prosecutors announced.
Cody James VanWinkle, 30, of Gresham; Kei-Jian Buckley, 32, of Beaverton; and Bruce Edward Jones Jr., 30, of Eugene, face charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, according to the U.S. attorney’s office for Oregon, according to the Department of Justice.
Alleged Scheme Used Altered Checks
Prosecutors allege the defendants stole or obtained stolen checks, then changed the intended recipients’ names and dollar amounts to redirect the payments.
VanWinkle and Buckley also allegedly established Pacific Swift Logistics, a limited liability company prosecutors described as a sham business used to facilitate the scheme. KPTV reported that the defendants recruited others to help withdraw or transfer funds before banks could flag the deposits as fraudulent, according to KPTV.
According to prosecutors, fraudulent checks and resulting funds were deposited or transferred into accounts the defendants controlled. Recruits who received money allegedly returned a share to the three men.
Defendants Plead Not Guilty
VanWinkle and Buckley were arraigned Sept. 29, while Jones appeared Sept. 24. All three pleaded not guilty, and trial is scheduled for Nov. 24, prosecutors said.
IRS Criminal Investigation is investigating the case, which Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Sax is prosecuting.
The charges are allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty
