DECATUR, Mich. — GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Mike Stamp, owner of Stamp Farms, plead guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and conspiracy to commit crop insurance fraud Wednesday.
Stamp admitted he fraudulently obtained a $68 million operating loan from Wells Fargo Bank in December 2011 by misrepresenting the amount of land he farmed and the value of his company's assets, which included harvested grain, fertilizer and fuel.
Stamp's wife, Melissa, also plead guilty to misprision of a felony for some of her actions in connection with Stamp Farms.
After Mike obtained the loan, he created false farmland leases and other documents, continuing to make misrepresentations to Wells Fargo about his business.
He also admitted that he defrauded the federal crop insurance program by filing false claims, falsifying harvested crop records and obtaining crop insurance in the name of entities with no insurable interest.
Melissa admitted she was aware of the fraud. She also said she did not help report it to authorities and helped hide money from Wells Fargo and other creditors of Stamp Farms.
“Bank fraud is a very serious financial crime,” said Manny Muriel, Special Agent in Charge of IRS-Criminal Investigation for the Detroit Field Office. “Providing false or misleading documents to financial institutions undermines the integrity of our financial system and will not be tolerated.”
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