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Tampa Man Pleads Guilty to Making False Statements to Credit Unions

Courts | Crime | TB Reporter

He faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison on each count.

TAMPA – A Tampa man is facing up to 120 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to falsifying information on loan and credit applications, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida said.

Richard Bowe, 40, of Tampa, pleaded guilty Monday (Feb. 25) to four counts of making false statements to federally insured federal credit unions. Bowe faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison on each count. His sentencing date has not yet been set.

According to facts presented at the plea hearing, in early 2015, Bowe applied to several different credit unions in the Tampa Bay area and made false statements in his loan and/or credit applications.

On Jan. 23, 2015, he applied for an auto loan of about $30,000 from the Florida Central Credit Union. In the loan application, he falsely claimed that he was employed by the U.S. Central Command and made a false representation about the amount of VA retirement benefits that he earned.

On Feb. 26, 2015, he applied for another auto loan of about $15,000 from the USF Federal Credit Union and again falsely claimed in the loan application that he was a deputy inspector general with the Central Command.

On March 4, 2015, he visited the USF Federal Credit Union and applied for another auto loan of about $47,000 and made false statements in that loan application about being employed at the U.S. Army Contracting Command and about his receipt of monthly VA benefits, according to court records.

He also applied for a credit card and membership at the Tampa Bay Federal Credit Union on Feb. 26, 2015. In that application, he again made false statements about his employment with the U.S. Army Contracting Command and about his VA benefits.

In each case, Bowe also submitted false and fraudulent documents verifying the employment and benefits that he falsely claimed to be receiving on a monthly basis. In reality, he had no such employment with the U.S. Army and received no such VA benefits.

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