Montgomery Brothers Sentenced for Check Fraud Scheme

Two brothers from Montgomery, Alabama, have been sentenced to prison for their roles in a massive check fraud scheme that affected multiple states and left over 100 victims in its wake.

Derrick Gadsden, 34, was sentenced to 240 months imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release for conspiracy to commit wire fraud. His brother, David Gadsden, 45, received a 120-month sentence and also three years of supervised release for the same charge.

The brothers were also ordered to pay $1,000,000.00 in restitution to the victims of their scheme.

The scheme, which ran from approximately 2006 to 2013, involved the Gadsden brothers using their places of business, an automotive garage and a tire shop, as the nerve center of their operation.

The brothers would lure vulnerable individuals into the scheme, promising them money, and enlist them as ‘runners’ to open bank accounts and transport checks to merchants.

The ‘buyers’ would then place orders with the Gadsdens to purchase large-ticket items, which they would pay for using the counterfeit checks. The Gadsdens would resell or trade the items for a profit, leaving the merchants with the losses.

The scheme involved approximately 200 bank accounts and affected seven different financial institutions across Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Georgia, and Louisiana.

The case was investigated by the United States Secret Service, the Montgomery Police Department, the Opelika Police Department, and the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board. Assistant United States Attorney Denise O. Simpson prosecuted the case.

RELATED: Shawn Anderson, Karl Funderburk Guilty in WV Drug Conspiracy

RELATED: “Super” Wright Gets 8 Years for Heroin & Coke Ring