A former Oklahoma Kia and Mitsubishi seller awaiting sentencing for 2021 fraud convictions faces three new fees of tampering with official proceedings.
Authorities allege former Huge Crimson Dealerships proprietor Bobby Mayes, of Norman, Okla., labored with co-defendant Courtney Wells on her alleged escape to Mexico previous to sentencing. Mayes additionally allegedly tried to acquire a brand new trial by fabricating proof and sending an nameless e-mail to the Western District of Oklahoma Courtroom with false data, based on a Feb. 7 indictment.
Mayes, Wells and fellow defendant Charles Gooch had been initially discovered responsible Nov. 19, 2021, of fees together with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and a number of counts of wire fraud, forgery and aggravated id theft. Federal prosecutors stated Mayes’ group — which consisted of Huge Crimson Sports activities/Imports, Huge Crimson Kia, Norman Yamaha, Norman Mitsubishi and Mayes Kia — used quite a lot of deceptions from January 2014 to March 2019 to persuade lenders to situation loans to clients with poor or no credit score, a demographic the enterprise had focused.
The jury convicted Mayes and Gooch on all 25 counts they confronted. Wells was convicted on 19 of 25 fees; she was acquitted on six of the 12 wire fraud counts she confronted.
Mayes, Gooch and Wells subsequently petitioned the courtroom to have their convictions modified to acquittals and likewise filed requests for brand spanking new trials. Hearings had been scheduled on each points for Might 10, 2022.
On Might 9, Mayes’ lawyer instructed the courtroom new proof had been discovered by Mayes’ workers.
The protection stated a folder had been discovered a pair days earlier in Wells’ workspace containing emails that “reveal a conspiracy between [a government witness] and Ms. Wells to falsify complete loss letters, bribe [a loan officer], steal from the dealership, overvalue pawn objects, conduct in-and-outs, and most significantly conceal all of it from Mr. Mayes.”
The protection submitting said Mayes additionally checked his private e-mail account Might 10 “and found an e-mail from Ms. Wells, dated Might 3, 2022, which may solely be described as a confession to the crimes for which the defendants had been convicted.”
In the meantime, Wells and her husband, Brandon Landers, had left the nation, reaching Texas on Might 2, 2022, and crossing into Mexico the next day, prosecutors alleged. Each had been arrested Oct. 24, 2022, in Mexico. Mayes was arrested Oct. 25, 2022.
“[Landers and Wells] individually confirmed that Mr. Mayes was concerned within the planning of their flight and certainly the plan was for all three of them to go away and go to Mexico in Might,” the U.S. lawyer’s workplace wrote in an Oct. 12, 2022, request to arrest Mayes.
Each Wells and Landers additionally referred to as the emails cited by Mayes faux, based on authorities. The U.S. lawyer’s workplace stated it was in a position to affirm this for at the least the Might 3 emails, which had been allegedly proven to have been written after Wells left Mayes’ office.
Mayes’ attorneys haven’t but responded to a request for remark.
Each Wells and Mayes have had their presentencing releases revoked.
Wells’ attorneys from Adler Markoff & Associates stated in a Feb. 23 written assertion that their consumer is grateful “that the reality is popping out,” and she or he seems ahead to paying “her debt to society” and shifting on with the remainder of her life.
