Description: Cedar Rapids, Iowa criminal defense lawyer represented Defendant charged with bank fraud.
Maegen Catherine Fortin, age 40, from Otsego, Minnesota, pleaded guilty to one count of financial institution fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.
Information from Fortin’s plea and sentencing showed that between March 2020 and September 2021, Fortin engaged in fraudulent conduct at credit unions and businesses located in Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Missouri, Illinois, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Fortin possessed or used the personal identifiers, such as names, Social Security numbers, and dates of birth, of at least ninety different people without their permission in connection with her fraud. Fortin used fraudulent United States passports, military IDs, and state driver’s licenses containing the victims’ personal information to apply for loans, lines of credit, accounts, and/or credit or debit cards in the victims’ names. Fortin attempted to obtain at least $650,000 and successfully obtained more than $460,000 as a result of her fraudulent conduct.
Fortin was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Judge C.J. Williams. Fortin was sentenced to 93 months’ imprisonment. She was ordered to make $463,774.59 in restitution to the credit unions and businesses. She must also serve a five-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.
Fortin is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until she can be transported to a federal prison.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kyndra Lundquist and investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Outcome: Defendant was sentenced to seven years in prison.
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