FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, November 26, 2007
DENISE SHAWNELL BURLAND PLEADS GUILTY IN U.S. FEDERAL COURT
Bill Mercer, United States Attorney for the District of Montana, announced today that during a federal court session in Missoula on November 26, 2007, before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah C. Lynch, DENISE SHAWNELL BURLAND, a 35-year-old resident of Bozeman, pled guilty to bank fraud and aggravated identity theft. Sentencing is set for March 6, 2008. She is currently detained.
In an Offer of Proof filed by the United States, the government stated it would have proved at trial the following:
On October 30, 2005, officers responded to a domestic violence call at a residence in Bozeman involving BURLAND and Michael Biggs.
Pursuant to a probation search of the residence, police discovered items of stolen mail, altered business checks, a social security card, credit card statements, and various other identifying items.
BURLAND agreed to speak with officers and admitted her involvement in the theft and forgery of checks in the name of a deceased individual, hereafter referred to as "J.G." BURLAND also admitted to altering other checks.
On November 12, 2005, shortly after BURLAND admitted to being involved in forgeries, police received a call about a suspicious check issued at Country Lanes Bowling Alley in Bozeman in the name of a female individual hereafter referred to as "A.G." The female individual was contacted and informed officials that she was not at the bowling alley. Officers responded to the bowling alley and through video surveillance, identified BURLAND as the individual attempting to pass the check.
On November 13, 2005, BURLAND passed one of "A.G.'s" checks at a local WalMart. When authorities responded to the scene, they reviewed a video surveillance tape that showed BURLAND passing a check at a WalMart checkout booth. "A.G." stated that the signature on the WalMart check was not hers and provided an affidavit of forgery and alteration with regard to the check which was drawn on her First Interstate account in the amount of $162.36.
BURLAND subsequently passed thousands of dollars in checks in "A.G.'s" name. "A.G." has stated that she can no longer write checks in Bozeman due to the number of fraudulent checks issued in her name. "A.G." also stated that she had been expecting a box of checks delivered to her parents' address which never arrived.
Additionally, "A.G.'s" parents run a Montessori school and have stated that they were expecting a State of Montana check that they never received. Officers recovered a check written to the order of the Montessori school at the same address as "A.G.'s" checks. However, superimposed in typescript above the payee line, is the added name of "DENISE BURLAND." The owner of the Montessori school stated that he does not employ or know anyone by that name and never would have authorized the check to be written to BURLAND. This check was cashed at the Bank of the Rockies in the amount of $1,223.
Subsequent investigation revealed that BURLAND possessed stolen business and payroll checks which she manipulated in order to insert her own name as the payee of the check, endorsed the check and cashed it at local banks. In all, BURLAND and Biggs were responsible for thousands of dollars issued in forged and altered checks in an approximately six month time span.
Biggs plead guilty to federal charges and is awaiting sentencing.
BURLAND faces possible penalties of 30 years in prison, a $1,000,000 fine and 5 years supervised release. In addition, BURLAND faces an additional mandatory two year imprisonment, consecutive to any other sentence, for aggravated identity theft.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan M. Archer prosecuted the case for the United States.
The investigation was conducted by the Bozeman Police Department.
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A copy of the Offer of Proof can be obtained by contacting Sally Frank at (406) 247-4638.
