Peoria Man Pleads Guilty to Wide-Ranging Fraud Scheme

PEORIA, Ill. – A Peoria, Illinois man, Chad D. Campen, 34, of the 6100 block of Pfeiffer Road, pleaded guilty on March 5, 2024, to one count of bank fraud, three counts of wire fraud, one count of money laundering, one count of bankruptcy fraud, and one count of false statements under oath. Sentencing for Campen has been scheduled for July 11, 2024, at the U.S. Courthouse in Peoria, Illinois.

In court before U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid, Campen admitted that he had orchestrated a long-term fraud scheme in which he lied about his business involvement and success and created false and fraudulent documents to deceive his victims. Campen obtained money from various financial institutions as well as goods, services, and funds from individuals and companies throughout central Illinois. At the hearing, the government stated that beginning as early as January 2013, Campen engaged in a scheme to defraud in which he made several false and fraudulent statements to banks and others. Specifically, Campen obtained funds by falsely claiming his success in multiple business ventures; representing to others the amount of land he was farming; claiming that he sold agricultural inputs; that he had substantial amounts of grain stored; representing that he had substantial assets and that he was a financial success.

Campen has been in the custody of U.S. Marshals Service since his arrest on January 25, 2022, and remains in custody pending sentencing.

Campen faces statutory penalties as follows: Bank Fraud up to 30 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine and 5 years’ supervised release; for Wire Fraud, up to twenty years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and 3 years’ supervised release for each count; for Illegal Monetary Transaction, up to 10 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine (or twice the amount of the criminally derived property), and 3 years supervised release, for Bankruptcy Fraud and False Statement Under Oath, up to 5 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and 3 years’ supervised release for each count.

The matter was referred to the United States Attorney’s Office by the United States Trustee for Region 10. The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Springfield Field Office, and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Douglas F. McMeyer is representing the government in the prosecution.