Local Businesses Victims in Check Kiting Scheme

Igor Pronin, of Lower Moreland, pleaded guilty last week to federal bank fraud charges, according to PhillyBurbs.com.

The charges were related to a check-kiting scheme involving two area banks, three Bucks County car dealerships and a Bensalem check cashing store.

Court documents filed by the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania explained that Igor Pronin was an authorized signor at First Niagara Bank for accounts in the names of Ambela Auto Trading, Superior Auto Trade, South Philly Leasing, of Langhorne; and at for an account in his own name.

According to the documents, from May to July 2010 Pronin engaged in a check kite by issuing checks written against the above accounts and depositing those checks into other accounts, knowing that there would be insufficient funds on deposit to cover the checks, and causing the accounts into which the checks were deposited to reflect falsely inflated balances.

According to court documents, Pronin also cashed checks from the above accounts at , 2214 Street Road. He then re-deposited a portion of the cash he received back into the issuing banks in order to offset portions of the kited checks, and to conceal negative balances.

In total Pronin caused a loss of approximately $659,000 to First Niagara Bank as the result of the check kite.

According to PhillyBurbs, sentencing has been scheduled for April 9 in federal court in Philadelphia.

(The charges are attached to this article as a PDF document.)