Former Reagor Dykes proprietor sentenced to 14 years in jail

Former Reagor Dykes Auto Group proprietor Bart Reagor was sentenced Thursday to 14 years in federal jail for mendacity to a financial institution in regards to the firm’s prospects.

In October, Reagor, 55, was found guilty of mendacity to the Worldwide Financial institution of Commerce after transferring greater than $1.7 million of a $10 million mortgage meant for the Lubbock, Texas, auto group to his private account from 2017 to 2018.

Reagor was additionally ordered to pay about $9.four million in restitution, in keeping with a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas.

“Mr. Reagor’s sentence sends a transparent message to any felony who makes use of company fraud for their very own private acquire,” FBI Dallas Particular Agent in Cost Matthew DeSarno mentioned within the press launch.

Reagor Dykes imploded and filed for chapter in August 2018 after an audit discovered discrepancies in what was owed to Ford Motor Credit score, resulting in separate costs towards 15 of Reagor’s former staff.

All 15 pleaded responsible to their roles in a $50 million wire fraud conspiracy towards Ford Credit score, and in January, Reagor Dykes’ former CFO Shane Smith was sentenced to seven years in prison.

Smith admitted to orchestrating floorplan fraud and check-kiting schemes to lie about gross sales. He additionally testified at Reagor’s trial that Reagor regularly drew cash out of the enterprise for private use, the U.S. Lawyer’s Workplace mentioned.

Reagor obtained the longest sentence of anybody from his firm.

All through the trial, the prosecution launched as proof video clips of him encouraging his staff to do no matter it took to turn out to be millionaires.

“Come on as much as the millionaire zone, come on as much as the personal jet-owning, gator-wearing, Rolex-wearing membership,” he mentioned to his staff at an organization assembly. “Or you’ll be able to cry your solution to sleep with all the opposite [expletive] losers.”

Reagor additionally advised his staff that anybody who introduced house a five-digit wage was broke .

“To Bart Reagor, anybody who is not a millionaire is a chump. And Mr. Reagor could not face being a chump,” U.S. Lawyer Chad Meacham mentioned within the press launch. “As a substitute of doing his finest to develop his enterprise actually, he padded his private checking account by mendacity to a federally-insured financial institution.”