BENTON — A Kinmundy man will serve six and a half years in prison after he was sentenced for committing bank fraud in federal court. Southern District of Illinois U.S. Attorney Steven D. Weinhoft announced Tuesday that 75-year-old Alfred L. Cross will serve the sentence after he pled guilty to the charges in the indictment in March.

Evidence presented in court showed that Cross defrauded seven southern Illinois banks out of more than a half million dollars. Some of the banks on the list that Cross defrauded include Community First Bank of the Heartland in Mt. Vernon, Farmers and Merchants State Bank in Nashville, First Southern Bank in Carbondale, and State Bank of Whittington in Benton.

Cross opened accounts at each bank and deposited large checks at each bank. The checks were drawn from an out-of-state bank that Cross controlled and knew had insufficient funds to cover the checks. But before the checks could be returned, Cross withdrew almost all of the funds he deposited. The alleged scheme occurred between April of 2011 and March of 2015.

The FBI Springfield Division conducted the investigation and the case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. State’s Attorney Scott A. Verseman.