BILLINGS — A Billings man on Thursday admitted to a scheme in which he defrauded the Crow Tribe by receiving checks from the tribe’s payroll account, forging the payees and having the payees cash the checks, U.S. Attorney Jesse Laslovich said today.
The defendant, Jonathan Cleve Brien, 43, pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud. Brien faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Timothy J. Cavan presided. A sentencing date will be set before U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen. The court will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors. Brien was detained pending further proceedings.