A U.S. District Court judge in East St. Louis, Ill., sentenced a former credit union member and small business owner to more than three years in federal prison last month for bank fraud and making 15 false loan applications over 14 months.

Judge David R. Herndon also ordered Christopher William Kreider, 29, to pay $207,116 in restitution and to serve five years of supervised release following his 37-month prison term.

Beginning in March 2010, Kreider started using his employees and friends to borrow funds from the $1.6 million Bell Community Credit Union in Alton, Ill., for his landscaping and excavating company because of the cooperative's loan limit, federal prosecutors said in court documents.

Over 14 months through May 2011, he got about a dozen employees or relatives to make false statements on 15 loan applications to secure loans in varying amounts from $3,000 to $42,000, according to court papers.

Though one loan was unsecured, 14 loans had collateral such as vehicles, excavators, backhoes, trailers and other equipment.

Prosecutors said the loans were turned over to Kreider to keep his failing business afloat.

Even though the small business owner made some payments on these loans, he failed to pay a substantial portion of the loan debt, prosecutors said.

Court documents do not explain how the fraud was uncovered. Kreider was indicted in December 2014. Prosecutors declined to comment.

During the fourth quarter of 2015, Bell Community and its 541 members were merged into the $312 million GCS Credit Union in Granite City, Ill.

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Credit Union Member Sentenced for Bank Fraud

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