Ashland Bank Executive Pleads Guilty To Bank Fraud

ASHLAND, Ky. – On Monday, a former bank executive admitted in federal court that he executed a 17-year scheme to defraud Town Square Bank of more than a million dollars.

Martin Ross, 52, pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud before United States District Court Judge Bunning.  Ross admitted he developed and executed a scheme to defraud Town Square Bank, where he used to work.  Ross admitted that between May 2000 and July 2017, he used fake names and documentation to obtain fraudulent loans that he would then use to pay his personal debts and expenses.  According to the plea agreement, Ross obtained 15 fraudulent loans over the past 10 years, with an outstanding loss of $1,415,082.

Ross was charged by way of information, waiving his right to indictment by a federal grand jury. 

Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, Joseph E. Moriarty, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Investigations, Chicago Region, Amy Hess, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Louisville Field Office and Todd Kelly, Chief of Police, Ashland Police Department, jointly announced the guilty plea.

The investigation was conducted by the Ashland Police Department, the FDIC, and the FBI.  The U.S. Attorney’s Office was represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kate K. Smith.  

Ross is scheduled to be sentenced on April 16, 2018.  He faces up to 30 years in prison and a maximum fine of $1,000,000. However, any sentence will be imposed by the Court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the applicable federal statutes.