An Indiana man has been sentenced to eight years in prison for stealing money from Iowa investors in an investment fraud scheme involving a purported public offering.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa, Lowell Gene “Bob” Hancher, of Sheridan, Indiana, fraudulently obtained and then stole investment funds from an undisclosed number of Iowa investors from April 2005 to January 2010. The defrauded investors believed they were investing in a public stock offering for Scott Contracting Inc., a privately held utilities, asphalt, and general contracting firm based in Henderson, Colorado. Instead of investing the investors’ money as promised, however, Hancher misappropriated it.
Hancher also admitted to stealing around $500,000 from Cycle Country Accessories Corporation, a publicly traded Nevada corporation with headquarters in Spencer, Iowa. Hancher, who was the chairman of Cycle Country’s board of directors, said he used his position on the board to obtain more than $500,000 from the company for the purposes of a stock buyback. Instead of orchestrating the buyback, however, he misappropriated most of the $500,000.
Hancher pleaded guilty to one count of mail fraud and one count of securities fraud in connection to the investment fraud schemes on Oct. 26, 2012. United States District Court Judge Mark W. Bennett sentenced him to 97 months in prison on March 27, 2013. Hancher also was ordered to pay $3,139,232 in restitution. For additional information on theHancher Iowa Investment Case, click here.
