PORTLAND, Maine: A Massachusetts man was sentenced in federal court for conspiring to commit bank fraud, aggravated identity theft and for committing criminal contempt while on pretrial release, U.S. Attorney Darcie N. McElwee announced.
Chief U.S. District Judge Jon D. Levy sentenced Bernard Gadson, 31, of Weymouth, Massachusetts to 110 months in prison and four years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $243,341 in restitution. Gadson pleaded guilty on October 25, 2021.
According to court records, beginning in about December 2018, Gadson oversaw a scheme to defraud banks and credit unions throughout New England. Gadson would obtain the names and personal identifying information of real individuals with good credit scores. Other members of the conspiracy would apply for unsecured personal loans in those names. Gadson obtained fake identification documents (e.g., driver’s licenses) bearing the names of the stolen identities with a photograph of a co-conspirator as well as bogus pay stubs and lease agreements to support the fraudulent loan applications. In January 2019, individuals working for Gadson attempted to obtain a $20,000 loan from KeyBank in Kittery. A loan officer at KeyBank became suspicious and alerted local law enforcement.
While on bail pending trial, Gadson engaged in new criminal conduct and orchestrated the submission of fraudulent loan applications to financial institutions in Minnesota. He also traveled extensively outside of the state without the prior approval of his supervising probation officer in violation of his conditions of release.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Investigations and the Kittery Police Department investigated the case.
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