Nebraska man owes over $500,000 in sheep breeding scheme
LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – A Ravenna man owes over half a million dollars to a bank after pleading guilty to lying about the number of sheep in his breeding operation, according to the Department of Justice.
At one point, the man told the bank that he had up to 4,941 sheep in his herd. Six months later, he falsely claimed that the number of sheep had fallen to 3,857 after dying from “various causes.”
Brooks Duester, 44, actually sold the sheep and kept the profits to himself rather than repaying his bank loans, said United States Attorney Steven Russell.
The sheep were listed as collateral for Duester’s bank loans.
United States District Judge John Gerrard sentenced Duester to five years of federal probation and 10 weekends of jail time.
In addition to his sentence, Duester was ordered to pay full restitution, or $569,332.80, to Ashton State Bank.
