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Michigan couple heading to prison for defrauding nearly 40 victims

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- U.S. Attorney Mark Totten in Grand Rapids says two residents from Clare County have been sentenced to federal prison for running an identity-theft scheme.

Totten says the married couple Gregory Hite and Bridget Bureau defrauded nearly 40 victims out of more than $3 million. Hite was sentenced to about 12.5 years in prison and Bureau to 4.25 years behind bars. They were ordered to to pay $1,952,186 in restitution to their victims.

Prosecutors say the couple pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud and unlawfully using the identities of others to fraudulently obtain financing for their former West Michigan business. They assumed the identities of others to obtain loans, according to Totten.

Here are more details from a U.S. Attorney's Office news release:

“Protecting victims from financial crimes is part of keeping our communities safe,” said U.S. Attorney Mark Totten. “Hite and Bureau deceived unsuspecting victims out of millions of dollars for their personal gain. Criminals do not always wear masks and carry a gun; sometimes they carry out their deeds with a pen and paper and a dash of charm. We are determined to hold fraudsters accountable whoever they are.”

Gregory Hite and Bridget Bureau, a married couple, pleaded guilty to conspiring with each other to commit wire fraud and unlawfully using the identities of others to fraudulently obtain financing for their former west Michigan businesses. Those businesses operated under several names, including Hites RV, Alpine Trailer Sales, Great Lakes Recreational, Great Lakes Trailer, GLR Transport, and Great Lakes Trailer Manufacturing.

Between 2016 and 2020, the defendants assumed the identities of credit-worthy individuals to fraudulently obtain $5,443,982 in loans to support their fledgling business venture. The defendants made materially false statements on loan/equipment financing documents, unlawfully used other people’s identities to obtain financing they could not get on their own, impersonated those victims on phone calls with other victims, and used multiple limited liability companies to facilitate and conceal their fraudulent conduct. The fraud scheme collapsed when the defendants ran out of money and lenders began seeking repayment from the identity theft victims.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated this case.

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