During the recent lapse in federal government funding, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Oklahoma continued to prosecute cases involving financial crimes. Several individuals were sentenced for offenses including bank fraud, theft of mail, and forgery.
Aaron D. Johnson, 43, from Oklahoma City, received a sentence of six months in federal prison. He will also serve 12 months of home confinement and 24 months of supervised release. Johnson was ordered to pay $102,069.44 in restitution and a $100,000 fine for bank fraud. According to public records, between September 2017 and November 6, 2018, Johnson served as President and CEO of Farmers Bank. During this time, he used the bank’s operating account to cover personal expenses, resulting in an overdraft of about $200,000. He then approved a loan modification without board approval and advanced $200,000 on that loan to repay the overdraft.
Deonte Montrell Hornsby, 28, also from Oklahoma City, was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison followed by five years of supervised release for conspiracy to commit bank fraud and possession of stolen mail. Public records show that between December 2024 and April 2025 Hornsby used a stolen United States Postal Service key to take mail from deposit boxes in Oklahoma City. He altered checks found in the stolen mail and deposited them into accounts owned by co-conspirators to withdraw cash from banks. The total losses attributed to Hornsby and his associates amounted to $72,727.96.
Rahbin Joseph Ward, 27, from Oklahoma City was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison with three years of supervised release. Ward must also pay $53,960 in restitution for conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Records indicate that between May and June 2023 Ward worked with others to obtain checks from stolen mail which they altered before depositing into Ward’s personal account.
The investigations leading to these prosecutions were conducted by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General (FDIC-OIG) and the United States Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Julia E. Barry and Jackson D. Eldridge prosecuted these cases.
“Reference is made to public filings for additional information.”
