Oklahoman sentenced for fraudulently applying for $1M inLoans

A woman who defrauded banks and credit unions through a complex scheme involving falsified loan applications and lien releases was sentenced Friday in federal court, announced U.S. Attorney Clint Johnson.

U.S. District Judge John F. Heil III sentenced Pamela Kathryn Conley, 60, of Catoosa, Oklahoma to 54 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release. She was further ordered to pay $451,065.64 in restitution.

In September 2021, Conley pleaded guilty to 24 counts of bank fraud and four counts of aggravated identity theft.  At the time of her plea, a jury had been selected, and federal prosecutors were set to proceed with their case at trial.

As part of her scheme, Conley falsified and submitted documents to apply for approximately $1 million in loans, securing more than $800,000 in loan proceeds, which gave Conley access to cash, boats, and cars to support her lifestyle. Conley submitted forged earning statements suggesting that she held high level positions at various companies and earned approximately $200,000 annually. Conley’s claims were all provably false.

Sometimes lying on applications was the full extent of Conley’s fraud. On other occasions, when loans were secured with collateral, Conley forged fictitious lien releases for bank collateral using the notarized signature of bank or credit union employees. Conley then caused the bogus lien releases to be filed with the Oklahoma Tax Commission. This allowed Conley to obtain clear title to the collateral without paying off her loans. This aspect of the scheme gave rise to the aggravated identity theft counts alleged in the indictment.

IRS-Criminal Investigation and the U.S. Secret Service conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Richard M. Cella, Melody N. Nelson, and David D. Whipple prosecuted the case.