Follow the money... in a circle

There's finally an indictment in the FNBC scandal. It might not be the last one.

Jeffrey Dunlap, 44, of Slidell, faces one felony count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, in what's likely the first domino to fall. Federal prosecutors have been investigating potential criminal charges related to First NBC's stunning collapse in April 2017 collapse, and in fact, many of the latest allegations were aired in a civil lawsuit filed in November in 22nd Judicial District Court in St. Tammany Parish.

Dunlap was charged in a bill of information, which usually indicates a defendant is cooperating with the government.

The allegations in the case illustrate the sort of shell game the bank played counting various instruments as revenue producing assets. In this case, Ashton Ryan is supposed to have been, basically, lending money to himself via Dunlap's firm.

Phoenix's work on the Mandeville project, called Wadsworth Estates, spanned seven years beginning in 2009, and included utility work as well as installing drainage, roadways and other infrastructure to develop the property, located on La. 1088. Plans call for a high-end business park and commercial development.

Each time Phoenix's loan from the bank became due, Ryan referenced his own debt to the firm as incoming revenue to justify the loan's creditworthiness and extend it, according to the lawsuit, which alleges fraud, unjust enrichment and unfair trade practices.

Monday’s bill of information echoes that complaint, alleging that Dunlap schemed with Ryan so both men could “unjustly enrich themselves, disguise the true financial status of (Phoenix), and conceal the accurate performance” of the firm’s credit line.

Anyway, there's potentially a lot more.  I wonder if the scope of this will remain limited only to the Phoenix stuff, though.