Former FSU Credit Union Employee Pleads Guilty to Bank Fraud, Identity Theft

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA – Kevin Robert Lee, 35, of Tallahassee, Florida, pleaded guilty yesterday afternoon to twenty counts of bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, theft from a lending institution, and three counts of filing a false tax return. The guilty plea was announced by Lawrence Keefe, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida.

Between June 2014 and November 2017, Lee was the lending director of FSU Credit Union (FSUCU), a Tallahassee-based credit union, a position that allowed him to open new customer accounts and approve lines of credit. He also served as treasurer of the Tallahassee Chapter of Credit Unions (TCCU), a non-profit organization that advocates pro-credit union legislation.

In 2014, Lee used the name, date of birth, and social security number of the President of TCCU to create a second account for TCCU. Lee used the original TCCU account for fraudulent activity while leaving the new account for legitimate TCCU transactions.

Lee also created two accounts using the names, dates of birth, and social security numbers of his college roommates, which served as “intermediary accounts” into which funds stolen from FSUCU customers were deposited. Lee also transferred funds from inactive customer accounts either to pay down the lines of credit he created, to the intermediary accounts he created, or into the original TCCU account.

Lee used the stolen funds to pay off personal credit cards, to make mortgage and car payments, and for his children’s tuition. In total, Lee transferred or withdrew a total of $806,666.26 from FSUCU. In February 2016 and March 2017, Lee filed tax returns in which he did not claim as income the funds he stole from FSUCU.

Lee faces the following penalties: • Bank fraud: a maximum of 30 years in prison; • Aggravated identity theft: a 2-year mandatory minimum prison sentence consecutive to any other sentence imposed; • Theft from a lending institution: a maximum of 30 years in prison; and • Filing a false tax return: a maximum of 3 years in prison.

The sentencing hearing is scheduled for August 22, 2019, at 10:00 a.m. at the United States Courthouse in Tallahassee.

This case resulted from an investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, after being alerted by FSU Credit Union. Assistant United States Attorney Justin M. Keen is prosecuting the case.