Man sentenced for 2020 mail, bank fraud in Carbondale

BENTON, Ill. – A federal judge sentenced an Illinois man Friday for a conspiracy to commit mail and bank fraud in Carbondale in 2020.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of Illinois, Brian R. Nevils, 25, and others used a stolen master key to gain access to mail boxes throughout Carbondale and deposited various checks into bank accounts.

Prosecutors said Nevils plead guilty to committing bank fraud and mail theft.

Charged co-conspirators include Quentin S. Abrams, 25, Isaiah C. Jordan, 30, and Demarius L. Flakes, 30, who was recently apprehended in Chicago. Abrams was sentenced to time served in April, and Jordan is set to be sentenced on October 1.

Court documents say that Nevils and others altered the payees and amounts of more than 100 stolen checks sent by more than 50 individuals through USPS from March through July 2020. The total estimated losses exceeded over $423,000.

Prosecutors say once Nevils obtained the checks, he deposited them into bank accounts of his co-conspirators before transferring the amounts into his own accounts or those of associates

Nevils pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of mail theft. He was sentenced Friday to 18 months in prison.

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