Two Jackson residents sentenced in bank fraud scheme

JACKSON, Tenn. — Two Jackson residents have been sentenced after being found guilty of being involved in a bank fraud scheme.

A press release from the U.S. Department of Justice states 43-year-old Jennifer Azbill-Hall and 61-year-old Benjamin Vargason were indicted in 2019 in connection with a scheme to steal around $820,000 from B&H Finance.

The release states between January 2015 and September 2018, Hall opened fictitious accounts in the names of former customers of B&H Finance, where she was employed.

According to the release, Hall took out loans and forged endorsements on checks made payable to customers, and then cashed the checks through Vargason’s business, Great American Sports. The release says Vargason deposited the checks in his company’s account and kept a portion of the proceeds.

The release states that Hall was also sentenced in connection with a separate scheme to defraud JMS Restoration while she was employed there in 2018 and 2019. According to the release, Hall used her access to the company’s bank account to pay her mortgage and to transfer funds to CastleGate Kennels, which was owned by her husband.

U.S. District Judge S. Thomas Anderson sentenced Hall to 30 months imprisonment to be followed by two years of supervised release. The release states she was also ordered to pay restitution of $920,218.59 and a mandatory assessment fee of $1,600.

The release states that Vargason was sentenced to time served and placed on supervised release for three years, with six months to be served in home confinement. According to the release, he was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $819,916.63.

The case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Jackson Police Department.

Click here to read the full release.

For more local crime stories, click here.