David Ross, Jr., 36, was sentenced today to 60 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for organizing and leading a conspiracy to defraud banks in Northern Virginia and elsewhere.  Ross was also ordered to forfeit and pay restitution in the amount of $200,238.

Neil H. MacBride, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Daniel Cortez, Inspector in Charge of the Washington Division of the United States Postal Inspection Service; and David E. Beach, Special Agent in Charge of the United States Secret Service’s Washington Field Office, made the announcement after sentencing by United States District Judge Anthony J. Trenga.  Ross pled guilty on Nov. 22, 2011.

According to court documents, Ross obtained blank checkbooks issued to other people, forged checks from those checkbooks, and recruited “runners” who deposited the checks into their bank accounts.  Ross and the runners then withdrew as much of the deposited funds as possible before the checks bounced or were discovered to be forgeries.  In total, Ross used at least 60 runners from June 2010 through August 2011.  He caused more than $500,000 in fraudulent deposits to area banks, and withdrew over $200,000 from the banks before he was caught.  Ross has been convicted of similar conduct in the past, including two prior bank fraud convictions in United States District Court.