BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — An Alabama man described by federal prosecutors as the ringleader of a multi-state bank fraud scheme involving forged U.S. Treasury checks has been sentenced to five years in prison.
Eddarrius Tyjuan Wallace, 37, of York, was sentenced to 60 months in federal prison and fined $25,000, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Alabama. Wallace pleaded guilty in May to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and bank fraud.
The scheme involved fraudulent deposits and withdrawals totaling more than $1.8 million at banks in Alabama and Mississippi, court documents said.
Prosecutors said Wallace organized and managed the scheme between June and September 2023. He recruited and trained other people to deposit and withdraw money from U.S. Treasury checks bearing forged endorsements, according to the Justice Department.
The investigation began after a Tuscaloosa bank reported in June 2023 that two Treasury checks with forged endorsements had been deposited. Authorities later identified multiple fraudulent transactions connected to the scheme.
Wallace was arrested Sept. 19, 2023, during a traffic stop in Madison, Mississippi, along with five other people, authorities said. Wallace was driving and had $11,969 in cash in his possession, according to court documents.
Officers searching the vehicle found a fraudulent identification card, mail and multiple bank debit cards bearing names that did not match any of the occupants, prosecutors said.
Wallace was on bond for unrelated state offenses during the fraud scheme, according to court documents.
“This type of fraud is a double problem: It steals money from the federal government and undermines the integrity of our banking system,” U.S. Attorney Phillip W. Williams Jr. said in a statement. “My office will continue to work closely with our law enforcement partners to investigate and prosecute those who steal from the government and manipulate the financial system for personal gain.”
Joel Weaver, special agent in charge of the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration’s investigation, said the agency is focused on protecting the nation’s tax administration system and prosecuting people who misuse Treasury refund checks.
The case was investigated by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office and the Madison Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel S. McBrayer prosecuted the case.