Chicago Man Sentenced to 46 Months in Prison

SOUTH BEND - Vance White, 40 years old, of Chicago, Illinois, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Cristal C. Brisco after pleading guilty to wire fraud, announced United States Attorney Adam L. Mildred.

White was sentenced to 46 months of prison followed by 2 years of supervised release and ordered to pay $264,705.53 in restitution.

According to documents in the case, White engaged in a scheme to defraud and to obtain money from retail stores by paying for merchandise with counterfeit checks. He would then return the stolen merchandise to different outlets of the same retail store and receive cash for the returns. White committed his fraud at retail stores in the Northern District of Indiana and in more than 25 states, including Ohio, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and Minnesota.

"Vance White methodically executed a scheme to defraud store after store across half of the states in the Union," said U.S. Attorney Mildred. "He must now repay over a quarter of a million dollars in ill-gotten gains that he accrued over four years, and he must now spend several years in federal custody. Fraudsters should take note-any illicit scheme designed to bilk innocent citizens or their businesses of hard-earned money will be investigated, prosecuted, and punished. My thanks go out to the brave agents and prosecutors who brought White to justice."

This case was investigated by Homeland Security Investigations and the United States Customs and Border Protection. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Luke N. Reilander.