COOPER, Texas–A former bank president has admitted to setting fire to the bank as part of an attempt to cover-up fraud.
Anita Gail Moody, 57, entered a guilty plea to bank fraud and arson, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas. The charges related to Moody’s role as the former president Enloe State Bank, also of Cooper, which was placed into conservatorship by the Texas Department of Banking and the FDIC in May 2019.
Moody has agreed to a sentence of 84 months. She has also agreed to pay restitution of $11.1 million, the U.S. Attorney said.
Enloe State Bank marked 2019’s first bank failure of 2019. The FDIC said the bank’s failure cost the insurance fund $27.6 million, which represented 75% of the bank’s total assets. At the time the regulator cited insider abuse and fraud by former officials as the reason for the failure.
In its statement, the U.S. Attorney said on May 11, 2019 the bank was hit with a fire that was determined to be arson. Suspiciously, investigators said the fire was contained to the bank’s boardroom.
“Several files had been stacked on the boardroom table, all of which were burned in the fire,” the U.S. Attorney said. “Coincidentally, the bank was scheduled for a review by the Texas Department of Banking the next day.”
Fake Loans
According to the release, further investigation discovered Moody had been creating false nominee loans in the names of several people, some of whom were actual bank customers. The U.S. Attorney said Moody admitted to setting the fire in the boardroom to cover up the criminal activity concerning the false loans.
Moody also admitted to using the fraudulently obtained money to fund her boyfriend’s business, other businesses of friends, and her own lifestyle, the agency said. Moody’s actions, which began in 2012, resulted in a loss to the bank of approximately $11 million, the U.S. Attorney said.