SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Robert Keehner, 49, of Norwood, has entered a guilty plea in federal court for his role in a $120,000 farm fraud scheme.
The United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, Tammy Dickinson, announced that Keehner pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush on Nov. 9, 2016, to charges of fraud using property mortgaged or pledged to farm credit agencies.
According to court documents, Keehner admitted to a scheme spanning from Oct. 20, 2011, to March 27, 2014. He sold livestock and dairy equipment that was supposed to be held as collateral by the Farm Service Agency (FSA) without notifying the agency of these sales.
While Keehner did not report most of the sales to the FSA, he also failed to instruct buyers to address proceeds checks to both the FSA and himself. None of the sale proceeds were sent to the FSA as required by his loan terms.
Keehner received two operating loans from the USDA through the FSA between 2005 and 2007, totaling $185,000. These funds were meant for livestock and dairy farming equipment. He conducted sales in his sister’s name to avoid detection and deposited proceeds into joint accounts he shared with his wife.
Since then, Keehner has stopped making repayments on his FSA loans, leaving an outstanding principal balance of $120,543. He faces up to five years in federal prison without parole. Sentencing will be determined by the court after completion of presentence investigations by the U.S. Probation Office.
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Key Facts
- State: Missouri
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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