Jury finds former Bank of America vice president guilty in bank, credit card fraud case

A federal jury found former Bank of America Vice President Robert Conner guilty of bank and credit card fraud today. That leaves two defendants in the case, including Rep. John Bowman, D-St. Louis:

When Bank of America Vice President Robert Conner filed for bankruptcy in May 2005, he said he had $50 in his pocket and $2 in his accounts.

But in June, he cooked up a scam that allowed him to find and spend $235,000 cash in the next six months, including $20,000 for a Yukon Denali SUV for his wife, $30,000 for a Mustang GT for his girlfriend and a $25,000 Hummer H2 for himself, Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Schelp said in court Friday.

Schelp called Conner a "financial predator," who got the cash under the table by giving dozens of unqualified people credit cards with $25,000 limits in exchange for kickbacks of up to $5,000.

On Friday evening, a jury convicted Conner of all 36 charges against him — 17 counts of bank fraud and 19 counts of unauthorized use of an access device — after a five-day trial in federal court in St. Louis.

Bowman's trial is tentatively scheduled for January.