BANKRUPTCY FRAUD SENTENCED

PRESS RELEASE

Susan W. Brooks, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, announced that JOHN M. BREWER, 58, Indianapolis, Indiana, was sentenced to five years probation with the first year to be served in home detention by U.S. District Judge David F. Hamilton following his guilty plea to bankruptcy fraud. This case was the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation after a referral by the United States Trustee’s Office.

BREWER, who operated a limousine service, filed for Chapter 7 voluntary bankruptcy in 2002. In the spring of 2003 he sold the business and failed to amend the schedules filed with his bankruptcy to reflect his receipt of a down payment of approximately $63,000. The bankruptcy court denied BREWER’s discharge.

According to Christina McKee, who prosecuted the case for the government, Judge Hamilton also imposed a fine of $10,000 on BREWER.

“Concealing assets in a bankruptcy is not only a violation of federal law, but it also undermines the integrity of the bankruptcy system and the public’s confidence in that system,” stated Nancy J. Gargula, United States Trustee for Indiana and the Central and Southern Districts of Illinois (Region 10). Assisting with the investigation and prosecution of Mr. Brewer were members of the Bankruptcy Fraud Working Group for the Southern District of Indiana, which includes representatives of the Office of U.S. Attorney, Office of U.S. Trustee, FBI, Housing and Urban Development, Internal Revenue Service -Criminal Investigation and U.S. Postal Inspectors, among others.

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