WILLIAMSPORT, Penn.–Having already served time for similar crimes, a man reputed to be the ringleader of a criminal organization that federal prosecutors say scammed banks and credit unions across the country has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
James Harris-Bey, 51, of the Detroit area, admitted in U.S. Middle District Court he scammed seven banks and credit unions in northern Pennsylvania. Terms of the plea agreement require him to pay restitution totaling $218,182.
He is one of three people indicted to date in a scheme in which accounts at banks and credit unions were opened using counterfeit lease agreements, payroll checks and earning statements, PennLive.com reported.
Fictitious Businesses
The publication noted that assistant U.S. Attorney Alisan V. Martin in outlining the government’s evidence said Harris-Bey and co-conspirators made deposits using counterfeit checks he created that contained the names of fictitious businesses.
Withdrawals then were made at various branches the same day before the financial institutions could reconcile the accounts, according to PennLive.com.
“On Oct. 25, 2019, withdrawals each for $1,552 were made from seven First Citizens Community Bank branches after counterfeit checks had been deposited purportedly from Horizon Medical Home Care,” PennLive.com stated. “Harris-Bey used women posing as home healthcare nurses to withdraw funds.”
Peter Douglas, 41, and Jaunea Waller-Bey, 36, both of Detroit, also are accused of taking individuals posing as traveling home care nurses to banks, prosecutors said. They are awaiting trial on bank fraud charges.
PennLive.com reported that Harris-Bey was arrested March 23, 2021 in Mississippi and said during his arraignment he was headed to Arizona to be with his wife.
Check-Printing Software Found in Car
“But prosecutors disputed that claim, alleging he was going through Mississippi, Louisiana and Tennessee to target banks in those states,” PennLive.com stated. “Check-printing software was found in his vehicle. Laptops and a printer were seized and an analysis of his cell phones revealed he was directing the movement of co-conspirators.”
The criminal activity with which Harris-Bey was charged began less than three months after completion of an 80-month federal sentence in Ohio in a similar check cashing scheme in which he was required to make restitution of $765,112, PennLive.com stated.
“With some reluctance, Judge Matthew W. Brann released Harris-Bey on personal recognizance into the custody of his sister in Detroit with the warning if he took one step out of line he would be back in jail,” according to the report.
Long Record
It will be easier for Harris-Bey to address his diabetes-related medical issues not being in jail, assistant public defender Gerald Lord told the court.
PennLive.com noted the reasons cited for keeping him detained until now included a significant history of fraud convictions, plus charges of assault with the intent to commit murder in 1990, providing false information to a police officer in 1994 and fleeing and eluding in 2006.
The National Crime Information Center records list 25 aliases and six dates of birth for him.
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