A former farmer from Shell Rock, Iowa, Mashon Van Mill, was sentenced on April 1 to six months in federal prison after pleading guilty to making a false statement to a financial institution.
Van Mill admitted he lied to his local bank while applying for a $1,000,000 farm operating line of credit. The case highlights the risks banks face when borrowers provide false information and the potential consequences of such actions.
According to court documents, Van Mill submitted a balance sheet claiming he owned over $2 million worth of corn in storage as collateral for the loan. In reality, he did not have any corn stored. Suspicion arose when a bank employee investigated Van Mill’s claims by contacting the owner of an elevator where Van Mill said his corn was stored. The elevator owner denied sending any letter confirming storage and stated that Van Mill had no corn at their facility at the time. Further investigation revealed that Van Mill also misrepresented other assets and money owed to him.
By the time these lies were discovered, the bank had lent him $873,118.71 under the line of credit. He defaulted on this amount as well as several other loans from the same bank.
United States District Court Chief Judge C.J. Williams ordered Van Mill to serve six months’ imprisonment and pay restitution totaling $873,118.71 to the victim bank. As of sentencing, $258,110.17 had been recovered through wage garnishments and property sales by Van Mill. After completing his prison term, he must serve five years of supervised release; there is no parole in federal cases.
Van Mill remains free on bond until April 27 when he is scheduled to surrender himself to authorities. Assistant United States Attorney Anthony Morfitt prosecuted the case with investigations conducted by both the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation – Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
