GREENEVILLE, TN—Jayesh Dahyabhai Patel, 49, of Knoxville, Tenn., was sentenced on Jan. 15, 2015, by the Honorable Leon Jordan, U.S. District Court Judge, to serve 42 months in federal prison. Patel was also ordered to pay restitution of $2,806,438.20 to First Community Bank and serve five years of supervised release upon his release from prison.

Patel was indicted in May 2014 and pleaded guilty in July 2014 to bank fraud. He admitted engaging in a scheme from approximately January 2009 to August 2011 to defraud First Community Bank of East Tennessee, Kingsport, Tenn., in connection with an application for a loan to his business, QIS Knoxville, LLC, by providing false tax returns to induce First Community Bank to issue the loan for the purchase and renovation of a Knoxville hotel. Patel further schemed to defraud First Community Bank by providing false invoices to induce the bank to disburse loan funds and by providing additional false tax returns in order to increase the amount of the loan and to obtain a six-month interest only payment period. Finally, he fraudulently induced First Community Bank to make a second loan to finance the sale of a motel by Patel to a relative by providing false information as to the down payment on the purchase. As a result of the fraud, First Community Bank suffered losses of $2,806,438.20.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil Smith represented the United States.

According to court documents, on June 4, 2014, law enforcement officers in Chico stopped Bertolini for driving with his car’s radio system playing too loudly. Bertolini emerged from his car appearing animated and agitated and he initially squared off to fight before turning and fleeing. After a foot pursuit, officers arrested Bertolini and found over 35 grams of packaged heroin on his person and in his car and a fully loaded Smith and Wesson .32 caliber revolver. During a later search of Bertolini’s residence, more heroin, trafficking paraphernalia, and another gun were found. Bertolini has suffered multiple prior felony convictions.

Bertolini is scheduled to be sentenced on April 16, 2015, by U.S. District Judge Troy L. Nunley. Bertolini faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for the gun offense and up to 20 years in prison for the drug trafficking offense. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.