AUGUSTA, GA: A former Richmond County man has been sentenced to federal prison for bank and bankruptcy fraud related to his purchase of an Augusta apartment complex.
Jerome Walter Kiggundu, 38, now a resident of Commerce City, Colo., was sentenced to 48 months in prison after his conviction in a jury trial in December 2021 on charges of Bank Fraud, Bankruptcy Fraud, and False Statements Under Oath, said David H. Estes, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. U.S. District Court Chief Judge J. Randal Hall also fined Kiggundu $2,500 and ordered him to serve three years of supervised release after completion of his prison term.
There is no parole in the federal system.
“Financial fraud costs everyone – not just the institutions who are the immediate victims, but everyone who participates in the free market and sees their costs increase to make up what fraudsters steal,” said U.S. Attorney Estes. “Jerome Kiggundu’s sentence should send an unmistakable message that our office and our law enforcement partners will relentlessly pursue such criminals and hold them accountable.”
As described in court documents and testimony, Kiggundu was the registered agent and managing member of Nakaddu LLC, a/k/a Kiggun Properties LLC, and borrowed $2,831,250 from a mortgage lender in March 2019 by submitting fraudulent bank statements to falsely claim that his company had an average monthly operating balance of approximately $100,000. During this period, his account actually had an average balance of approximately $500. Kiggundu also submitted a false personal financial statement overstating his net worth and assets to qualify for the loan, which he used to refinance an 80-unit apartment complex that the company owned at 405 Hale St., in Augusta.
When the scheme started to unravel, Kiggundu filed for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 to avoid foreclosure by the lender. Kiggundu then submitted another set of fake bank statements in his bankruptcy proceedings to conceal his bank fraud, and lied under oath about his finances when questioned by employees of the United States Trustee Program who suspected this fraud.
“Kiggundu’s extensive fraud scheme was motivated purely by personal greed,” said Keri Farley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “This sentence serves as a warning to others that the FBI will not let such lies go unchecked.”
The case was investigated by the FBI with assistance from the United States Trustees Program, and prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Patrick J. Schwedler and Jennifer A. Stanley.