Banker sentenced for obtaining hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraudulent loans

SAVANNAH, GA: A former commercial loan officer at a Chatham County bank was sentenced to prison after admitting he obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraudulent commercial loans using another person’s identity without their consent.

Jason McMillan, 46, of Savannah, was sentenced to 10 months in prison and ordered to pay $112,430 in restitution after pleading guilty to Bank Fraud, said David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. U.S. District Court Judge William T. Moore Jr. also ordered McMillan to serve three years of supervised release and perform 40 hours of community service after completion of his prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.

“Jason McMillan used his insider access at the bank that employed him to get money that fueled his chosen lifestyle,” said U.S. Attorney Estes. “In addition to being held accountable, as part of his plea agreement McMillan agrees to never again work in the industry whose trust and customers he betrayed.”

McMillan admitted that from July 2009 through April 2019, he knowingly used the identity of another person without their consent in obtaining commercial loans in the amounts of $187,000, $160,000, $157,000 and $250,000 from a Chatham County bank where he worked as its commercial loan officer. McMillan also admitted he obtained these loans under the false pretense that loans would be used for obtaining industrial farm equipment. McMillan admitted he knowingly used approximately $200,271 of these funds for his own personal use. The bank discovered the fraud during an internal investigation.

“McMillan’s sentencing reinforces the importance of protecting people’s personal identifiers,” said Steven Baisel, Special Agent in Charge, United States Secret Service.  “We will continue to pursue these criminals and hold them accountable.”

The case was investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorney Steven H. Lee and Asset Forfeiture Unit Section Chief Xavier A. Cunningham.