A Mammoth Spring man was sentenced Wednesday for bank fraud after stealing more than $9 million from a client in Trumann, Arkansas.
71 year old Edward Cooper, was sentenced to 5 years in federal prison.
Cooper worked for Osborn & Osborn accounting firm in Jonesboro and handled a number of financial affairs for Roach Manufacturing Corporation in Trumann. Beginning in 1996, when he prepared dividend distribution checks and tax checks for Roach Manufacturing, he requested extra checks and then made them payable to himself.
Cooper deposited these checks into his own account without the knowledge of Roach Manufacturing. He took approximately 138 unauthorized checks over 20 years, totaling over $9 million. In the fall of 2017, Roach Manufacturing hired a financial manager who detected the fraud.
Cooper pleaded guilty in January 2020 to one count of bank fraud. In addition to 60 months in prison, Cooper was sentenced to two years of supervised release following his term of imprisonment. Cooper was also ordered to pay $7,401,744.82 in restitution.