Crime & Safety

Chesterfield Man Pleads Guilty to Bank Fraud

Christopher Scott Walters pleaded guilty to bank fraud and other federal charges.

A Chesterfield man could face 18 months in prison after pleading guilty to bank fraud and other charges, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Christopher Scott Walters, 48, pled guilty in a federal court to five charges: two counts of bank fraud, two counts of uttering forged securities and one count of unlawful monetary transactions, notes a Wednesday press release from the US Department of Justice.

Walters owns apartment building Ashby Heights near Maryland Heights and Overland. After the building experienced fire damage in 2008, Walters used fire insurance money to buy a 2009 Cadillac Escalade and pay personal debts, the press release notes.

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He also forged Citibank endorsements on checks, the release notes. Citibank held a lien on the apartment building and needed to approve building repairs before Walters could spend the money.

According to online apartment reviews, Walter's apartments haven't been well-maintained.

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Walters was in deep water in the late 1990s into the early 2000s as well.

The watchdog group, ReclaimDemocracy.org, reported in 2006 that Walters set up shell companies that hired undocumented workers to clean floors in Walmart stores. Walters had charged Wal-Mart $82.2 million for the service.

Walmart paid $11 million in damages and Walters wasn't penalized after cooperating with the investigation, the website notes.

Sentencing from federal judge Audrey Fleissig for his current charges has been scheduled for Feb. 21.


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