United States Attorney's Office District of Connecticut
Press Release

NEW YORK MAN WHO DEFRAUDED GE CAPITAL IS SENTENCED

Kevin J. O'Connor, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced today that JOHN LOPEZ, age 46, of Newburg, New York, a former employee of NTFC Capital Corporation (NTFC Capital), a wholly owned subsidiary of General Electric Capital Corp. (GE Capital), was sentenced today by Senior United States District Judge Peter C. Dorsey in New Haven to three years of probation, the first six months of which he must spend confined to his home. Judge Dorsey further ordered LOPEZ to perform 150 hours of community service, and to pay restitution in the amount of $50,559. Over the Government's objection, Judge Dorsey departed from the sentencing guideline range of 10 to 16 months of incarceration, citing the medical needs of the defendant's wife and his extraordinary contrition.

On February 26, 2004, LOPEZ, who was a Portfolio Asset Analyst for NTFC Capital working in its Danbury, Connecticut office, pleaded guilty to a one-count Information charging him with engaging in a scheme to defraud GE Capital. As part of its ongoing business, NTFC Capital negotiated buyouts of lease contracts that customers had previously executed to lease computers or phone systems. Each buyout presented different negotiating circumstances, but a Portfolio Asset Analyst, such as the defendant, was provided by NTFC Capital with a range of acceptable terms for a lease buyout. The Portfolio Asset Analyst was to negotiate the best terms for NTFC Capital under the circumstances of the particular case, but within the previously identified acceptable range.

LOPEZ admitted that from in or about June 2002, through in or about May 2003, he engaged in a scheme to defraud NTFC Capital and GE Capital by negotiating buy-out prices with customers at the higher end of the range previously identified as acceptable by GE Capital, informing GE Capital that he had negotiated the buy-out for less than he had, and pocketing the difference. More specifically, LOPEZ issued an invoice to the customer at the higher buy-out figure, took the check cut by the customer and deposited it in his personal bank account. After the check cleared, LOPEZ generated a fraudulent second invoice, reflecting that the customer was buying out the lease at a price lower than monies Lopez had actually received from the customer. LOPEZ then remitted monies to GE Capital from his checking account in an amount reflected on this second invoice and kept the difference for his personal use. As noted in documents submitted to the Court, the defendant agreed that he had stolen $50,559.18 from his employer using this scheme.

This case was investigated by Special Agents with the U.S. Secret Service. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christopher W. Schmeisser.

CONTACT:

U.S. ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
Tom Carson
(203) 821-3722
thomas.carson@usdoj.gov