Previous entry: No potentially deciding votes among Jehovah’s Witnesses
Next entry: Meditation advocates push for practice elsewhere
Related
Advertisements *
Advertise Here *
Elsewhere
Subscribe: RSS
 |
RNB's RSS feed What is this? |
Subscribe: Email
 |
 Subscribe by Email What is this? |
Most Popular
- Cult leader Wayne Bent ends ‘religious fast’
- John Travolta’s 16-year-old son dies
- Forensic interview with girl in Tony Alamo case leaked to website
- Priest’s 2006 conviction in nun’s murder stands
- Neo-Nazi Violence: German Mayor in Hiding after Far-Right Threat
- 9 Muslims Are Pulled From Plane and Denied Re-entry; Airline Apologizes Next Day
- Jett Travolta’s death shines spotlights on cult’s quackery
- Tom Cruise gets more mileage out of claim that Scientology cured his dyslexia
- Facts don’t fit claims of FLDS welfare fraud
- Judge: smuggled monkey meat needed for religious reasons? Still need a permit
Tampa church bishop, officials indicted on fraud charges
More articles on this topic: Michael Wayne LewisTAMPA - A church bishop and two top aides have been indicted by federal prosecutors on charges they bilked banks out of nearly $2 million to finance the clergyman’s “lavish and expensive lifestyle.”
Michael Wayne Lewis, a bishop at the Harvest Fellowship Bible Church, and has pleaded innocent to conspiracy, bank fraud and money laundering charges in a 14-count indictment unsealed Thursday.
Also named in the indictment were Louise Gentle and Patricia Carter, whom Lewis is accused of using to sign checks written from fraudulent loan proceeds.
The main victim of the scheme is AmSouth Bank, which loaned Lewis vast sums, even though he had a criminal-fraud record, the indictment said.
A check for $48,834.45 went to purchase a 2004 Lincoln Navigator in the name of Harvest Fellowship Bible Church and Achievement Educational Systems “even though the vehicle was for Lewis’ personal use,” the indictment said.
The indictment also alleged Lewis forged signatures of other ministers and pastors in churches he associated with to obtain loans in those churches’ names without the pastors’ knowledge.
“I think this matter would have best been handled in civil court,” said Lewis’ attorney, Darryl Rouson. “It is not criminal. We expect the bishop to be vindicated.”
AmSouth sued Lewis in March, alleging he headed a conspiracy involving front organizations and numerous conspirators.
The plot was to obtain more than $10 million in fraudulent loans from the bank “using a combination of misrepresentations, forged signatures, false financial statements, stolen identities and other fraudulent documents,” the civil suit said.
The defendants allegedly borrowed against nonexistent equipment and used inflated real estate appraisals to back loans, according to the lawsuit. Some loans were supposed to fund building improvements that were never done and equipment that was never purchased, the lawsuit says.
Carter, who was represented by the Federal Public Defender’s Office, pleaded not guilty. Gentle did not enter a plea because she has not yet hired an attorney.
What You Can Do From Here
|
Read More Articles On These Topics
Share, Blog About, Bookmark, or Email This Article
Subscribe
Read Another Article
Previous entry: No potentially deciding votes among Jehovah’s Witnesses Next entry: Meditation advocates push for practice elsewhere
RNB Homepage with latest headlinesFind Related Information
Find Related Books
|
Share This Article
To share this page simply copy and paste one of these URL's:
