Marshall County Man Indicted On Bankruptcy Fraud Charges

WHEELING, WEST VIRGINIA – Francis Tucker, of Moundsville, West Virginia, was indicted today on bankruptcy fraud charges, Acting United States Attorney Randolph J. Bernard announced.

Tucker, 67, was indicted today on one count of “Fraudulent Transfers in Contemplation of Bankruptcy,” one count of “False Bankruptcy Declarations,” and one count of “Structuring Financial Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements.”

Tucker was the secretary for Danzac, Inc., a video lottery machine service and real estate holder. In January 2018, the Circuit Court of Ohio County granted a civil judgement against Tucker in the amount of approximately $469,000. Tucker is accused of transferring personal and business properties to others in the months leading up to the defendant filing for bankruptcy in July 2018 in Ohio County. He is accused of falsifying the bankruptcy documents by claiming that he had not been involved in reportable property transfers and had no connections to a business.

Tucker is also accused of conducting withdrawals of proceeds from the sale of a property in Florida in a manner and, with the intent to avoid bank reporting requirements regarding certain cash transactions. This crime was alleged to have occurred in 2016.

Tucker faces up five years of incarceration and a fine of up to $250,000 for each charge. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed will be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.