Vernier pleads guilty to bankruptcy fraud
MARQUETTE — A former Ishpeming business owner accused of being involved in a check-kiting scheme entered a plea agreement in U.S. District Court Monday morning.
David Vernier, who at one time was involved with Oasis Fuels Inc., pleaded guilty to bankruptcy fraud. A second charge of concealment of assets will be dropped at sentencing.
According to court documents obtained by ABC 10, Vernier admitted he devised a scheme to defraud one or more of his creditors by concealing his income and property. He made these false claims in a bank loan application he filed with Peninsula Bank on March 2nd, 2011.
The statutory maximum penalty for bankruptcy fraud is 5-years in prison, a 3-year period of supervised release, and restitution payments. The amount of restitution Vernier owes to his creditors is still being determined.
“Looking back I would’ve done things a lot differently,” the elder Vernier told Judge Timothy Greeley during his plea hearing.
Because the restitution amount is still being determined, no sentencing date has been set.