A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed the conviction of a co-defendant in the Brandon Barber money-laundering case.
Circuit Judges Raymond Gruender of St. Louis, C. Arlen Beam of Lincoln, Neb., and Duane Benton of Kansas City, Mo., on Thursday affirmed the conviction and sentencing of James Van Doren.
Van Doren's appeal focused on the argument that there was an inadequate factual or legal basis for his August 2013 guilty plea to money laundering. Van Doren also argued that U.S. District Judge P.K. Holmes III erred in denying his motion to withdraw his guilty plea in June.
Van Doren was sentenced Nov. 4 to 15 months in prison and fined $10,000.
Holmes wrote in his order that Van Doren admitted in his change-of-plea hearing in August 2013 that he accepted a $64,000 check from Barber and deposited it in his bank account as part of a scheme to help Barber hide his assets from his creditors. Van Doren wired $22,000 of the $64,000 back to Barber a month later.
Barber was arrested in New York City in 2013 on 27 federal charges and pleaded guilty to three of them -- conspiracy to commit bankruptcy fraud, money laundering and conspiracy to commit bank fraud. He was sentenced Oct. 28 to serve five years and five months in prison.
State Desk on 09/05/2015