Tyler Gillum, Check Kiting Scheme, Kansas 2024

TOPEKA, KAN. – The Plainville Livestock Commission in Rooks County is at the center of a sordid tale of financial chicanery. Tyler Gillum, 47, and his wife Camden Gillum, 50, both from Plainville, Kansas, have been charged with executing an elaborate check kiting scheme that cost banks millions of dollars, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.

A grand jury in Topeka returned the indictment against the couple on Wednesday, leveling 31 counts of bank fraud. They also face charges for making false statements to the Small Business Administration in an application for a $1.5 million loan and to Almena State Bank for a $500,000 line of credit.

The Gillums are accused of defrauding several banks, including Almena State Bank, Landmark Bank in Manhattan, Colorado East Bank and Trust in Lamar, Astra Bank in Scandia, TBK Bank in Dallas, Guaranty State Bank in Beloit, and The Bank in Oberlin. According to the indictment, the scheme involved more than two billion dollars in wire transfers and checks.

Investigators scrutinized over 409 wire transfers and 7,584 checks sent by Tyler Gillum as part of this fraudulent enterprise. Before his downfall, Tyler Gillum was a loan officer at Montezuma State Bank and co-owned the Plainville Livestock Commission with his wife. In promotional materials for their business, they claimed to offer individualized attention in marketing livestock.

The indictment defines check kiting as a form of check fraud that exploits the time lag between presenting a check and receiving funds. Its purpose is to artificially inflate a checking account balance to clear checks that would otherwise bounce.

Multiple federal agencies are involved in the investigation, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture – Office of Inspector General, the FBI, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation – Officer of Inspector General, the Federal Housing Finance Agency – Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Small Business Administration – Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Rich Hathaway is handling the prosecution of the case.

In all cases, defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The indictments contain merely allegations of criminal conduct.

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