A Bryant man who was accused of stealing a former client’s personal information and using it for personal gain admitted to the charges in federal court on Tuesday.
According to a Wednesday news release from the United States attorney’s office for the Eastern District of Arkansas, 33-year-old Christopher Williams pleaded guilty in Little Rock to one count of bank fraud after he said that he gained access to the information of a former client in January. Williams had made contact with the former client after he lost his job as a financial adviser with Charles Schwab in June 2012, the release states.
Williams obtained of the victims’ financial information and got the victim to sign personal checks to a third-party source, which was revealed to be under Williams’ control. Williams also used the information to open several credit cards in the victim's name and create an account on the stock-trading Web service E*Trade, which allowed him to transfer money out of the victim’s bank account, the release states.
Williams was charged with one count of bank fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft in December 2012 and indicted in January.
Williams, who was released on his own recognizance, faces a sentence of up to 30 years in prison and a fine of up to $1 million.