Alleged Fraud Scheme Totaling $1.1 Million Involves CUs in Illinois & Iowa

A chiropractor pleaded not guilty to 14 felonies stemming from a $1.1 million fraud case, including the alleged theft of more than $260,000 in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans from an Illinois credit union and an alleged scheme to obtain a mortgage of nearly $600,000 from an Iowa credit union.

Jason Rannfeldt, 51, of Davenport, Iowa, was charged in a federal courtroom on March 14 and pleaded not guilty to seven counts of false statements to a financial institution, six counts of bank fraud and one count of money laundering, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Rannfeldt, who owned five different businesses, obtained or attempted to obtain more than $1.1 million in PPP loan funds from a credit union and four banks by allegedly including false and misleading information and documents on 11 loan applications, according to the indictment.

In April and May of 2021, the $1 billion Vibrant Credit Union in Moline, Ill., approved four PPP loans for Rannfeldt’s businesses that led to an actual loss of $262,333, according to court documents.

Cross River Bank also approved one loan for Rannfeldt that caused an actual loss of $29,542, but it denied three other PPP loans that amounted to an attempted loss of $465,692.

Likewise, his loan application with Quad Cities Bank & Trust also was denied for an attempted loss of $115,000. In addition, Ranndfeldt’s loan applications were denied at Northeast Bank and U.S. Bank, and an attempted loss of $115,000 for each financial institution, according to an indictment.

What’s more, in August 2021, Rannfeldt allegedly submitted a false and misleading residential mortgage loan application to the $11.3 billion GreenState Credit Union in North Liberty, Iowa, and provided documents containing fraudulent misrepresentations. The credit union approved the $588,750 mortgage loan, according to court documents.

Rannfeldt’s attorney did not respond to a request from CU Times for comment.