Louisiana Man Sentenced to Prison for Bank Fraud After Stealing More Than $200,000 from Employer

Louisiana – On July 13, 2022, United States Attorney Duane A. Evans announced that Rodney Roussell (“Roussell”), age 40, of Belle Rose, Louisiana, was sentenced on July 12, 2022, for Bank Fraud in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1344. (2).

The case against Roussell began with a complaint to the FBI from a New Orleans company (“Company A”). According to documents filed in federal court, Roussell began working for Company A in August 2017 as part of a work re-entry program for people with criminal records. The operational headquarters of Company A was in New Orleans, Louisiana, and they had a business account with JPMorgan Chase Bank (“Chase Bank”).

Roussell, as an employee of Company A, had no access to Company A’s Chase Bank account and was not authorized to make any payments from the account. Roussell used Chase Bank’s web portal and mobile banking app to transfer money from Company A’s account to accounts held by Roussell, including MC & Associates Management, Inc., beginning in or around April 2018 and ending in or around June 2018. Roussell illegally obtained a total of $213,372.05 from Company A’s Chase Bank account.

Roussell was sentenced to seventy months (5 years, 10 months) in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, a $100.00 mandatory special assessment fee, and restitution to Company A in the amount of $213,372.05 by U.S. District Judge Greg G. Guidry.

The United States Attorney’s Office would also like to thank the Federal Bureau of Investigation for its assistance in this matter. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba, Chief of the Financial Crimes Unit.