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Press Release

Matthew Morgan, Ruebin Beard Imprisoned For Bank Larceny

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Vermont

The United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that Matthew Morgan, 52, and Ruebin Beard, 52, both of Burlington, have been sentenced in United States District Court in Burlington following their guilty pleas to a charge of bank larceny.  Today, U.S. District Judge Christina Reiss sentenced Beard to 14 months of imprisonment to be followed by three years of supervised release.  This past November, Judge Reiss sentenced Morgan to 20 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release.  The court ordered both defendants to pay restitution totaling $27,300 and that Morgan forfeit a Jeep vehicle.  Both defendants are currently incarcerated.  

In March 2021, a federal grand jury in Burlington returned a two-count superseding indictment charging Morgan and Beard with conspiracy and with stealing money and property worth more than $1000 from Citizens Bank, a federally-insured financial institution.  The charges stem from the theft of an ATM machine from the UVM campus in September 2020.  At the time of the theft, the ATM machine contained about $23,000 in cash.  The indictment also sought to forfeit a 2011 Jeep Patriot automobile, which Morgan bought with proceeds of the ATM theft.  Both defendants pleaded guilty to the bank larceny count.

This case was investigated by the University of Vermont Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Morgan is represented by Assistant Federal Defender Stephen Barth, and Beard by Lisa Shelkrot.  The prosecutor is Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Waples.

Updated January 14, 2022

Topics
Asset Forfeiture
Financial Fraud