Illinois Man Sentenced to 60 Months in Prison

HAMMOND – Tarrell Sims, 37 years old, of Country Club Hills, Illinois, was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Philip P. Simon after pleading guilty to two counts of Conspiracy to Commit Bank Fraud, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.

Sims was sentenced to 60 months in prison followed by 2 years of supervised release and was  ordered to pay $389,135.20 in restitution to the victim bank.

According to documents in the case, between November 2019 and February 2020, Sims directed a scheme to fraudulently obtain over $500,000 from the proceeds of two stolen business checks. Sims registered fictitious corporations in Indiana and opened fraudulent bank accounts with the assistance of two individuals whom he recruited. Sims and his co-conspirators successfully obtained over $380,000 from the bank fraud scheme.

Sim’s co-defendants have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.

This case was investigated by United States Postal Inspection Service and Lake County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Abizer Zanzi.