Fresno Man Sentenced to 7.5 Years in Prison for $30-plus Million Fraud Scheme

Matthew Dane Billingsley, 40, of Fresno, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston to seven years and six months in prison for wire fraud in a scheme that defrauded individual lenders and financial institutions out of more than $30 million, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.

"The defendant defrauded victims out of millions of dollars. Over nearly five years, he repeatedly and deliberately committed crimes by altering documents, forging signatures, and otherwise lying," said U.S. Attorney Grant. "This office, together with our law enforcement partners, will continue to aggressively pursue those who defraud victims and threaten our financial system through deceit."

"Matthew Billingsley orchestrated a deliberate campaign of fraud, stealing more than $30 million through falsified documents," said FBI Sacramento Special Agent in Charge Sid Patel. "The FBI, in partnership with IRS Criminal Investigation, put an end to his pattern of manipulation and exploitation. We will relentlessly pursue those who victimize others through dishonesty and greed."

"Today's sentencing sends a clear message: those who engage in deception to defraud lenders and abuse the financial system will be held accountable," said IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Oakland Field Office Special Agent in Charge Linda Nguyen. "By fabricating brokerage statements and misusing loan funds, Mr. Billingsley not only betrayed the trust of financial institutions and individual lenders but also undermined the integrity of our financial markets. IRS-CI uses fundamental accounting principles mixed with advanced technology to build investigations that extinguish such financial deceit."

According to court documents, between June 2018 and February 2023, Billingsley made false representations about having a brokerage account with millions of dollars in assets to serve as collateral for loans. Billingsley gave fabricated brokerage account statements to obtain more than $30 million in loans from individual lenders and financial institutions. The brokerage account statements were false because the brokerage account did not exist. Billingsley also misrepresented to individual lenders and financial institutions the intended use of the loan funds and, instead, used the money to pay down previous loans and for his personal benefit.

To obtain one of the loans, Billingsley used a Fresno restaurant owner's name and signature on a profit-sharing agreement that Billingsley created and forged. Billingsley presented the false and fraudulent profit-sharing agreement to a financial institution to obtain a loan.

This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the IRS Criminal Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Brittany M. Gunter prosecuted the case.