A Vancouver man who pleaded guilty, with two others, of operating a bogus loan operation that defrauded about 20 hopeful business operators out of more than $800,000 is free so he can be with his ailing mother, an official said Friday.
Chad Orville Derousse, 40, who pleaded guilty of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud, was sentenced on Nov. 8 to a year and a day in federal prison. His co-conspirators, Darcy and Alyson Start of Camas, pleaded guilty on the same day and were sentenced to nearly three years in prison, according to documents filed in U.S. District Court in Tacoma.
The court ruled that Derousse could begin serving his sentence no sooner than Feb. 6 — 90 days after Nov. 8 — and no later than March 8 — 120 days — so he could spend time with his mother, who was very ill, said Emily Langlie, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
The judge also ordered a special arrangement for the Starts. Because they have four children, the judge ordered Alyson Start to begin serving her time immediately and, when she is released, for Darcy Start to begin serving his 33 months.
Alyson Start, 35, is in custody in the Federal Detention Center SeaTac, south of Seattle, and her release date is May 18, 2013, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons website, http://www.bop.gov.
Darcy Start, 46, was free Friday, as was Derousse, the website says.
The Starts were indicted in April 2009, after some of their loan-seeking victims complained to the Vancouver Police Department — and the FBI took over the case.
They pleaded guilty in March 2010, and Derousse followed suit in May.
U.S. District Court Judge Benjamin H. Settle told the couple at sentencing that he was “astounded” they were “so willing to defraud and deceive others.”
The Starts promised they could help more than 20 different clients obtain financing for their small or startup businesses. They took fees they said they would return if they failed to obtain the loans, yet never did. The loss amount is estimated at more than $845,000.
Loss to communities
As Assistant U.S. Attorney Aravind Swaminathan described in his sentencing memo, “For approximately three years, defendants Alyson and Darcy Start preyed upon the hopes and dreams of their victims, many of whom were seeking loans to build or complete projects that would have created jobs and helped their communities.
“But in the process, the Starts repeatedly lied to their victims, falsely represented their ability to secure funding for their victims’ projects, and defrauded victims out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.”
The couple’s advance-fee scheme used sham companies including Advanced Lending Solutions, Rocket Processing Inc. and Imperial Acquisition and Holdings. Inc. They used the fees they collected to pay for private school tuition for their children, travel and numerous gambling junkets. Between April 2007 and November 2008, the Starts made more than 65 trips to casinos in Las Vegas, Reno and throughout Washington, officials said.
The Starts peppered their communications to some of their victims with Bible verses “to make themselves appear honest and forthright,” the news release said.
Officials said the three worked together, out of their homes, using websites that advertised their ability to obtain large loans. The conspiracy began “no later than January 2006,” according to the indictment.
As for Derousse, agents said he operated Diamond Crest Consulting Corp., using his website to say, “We work with over 100 Class ‘A’ lenders,” and claiming he could arrange loans ranging from $1 million to $10 billion.
The Columbian was unable to reach Derousse on Friday to ask when he plans to begin serving his sentence.
The judge also ordered him to comply with three years of supervised release and, with the Starts, to pay $363,000 in restitution.
The defendants failed to obtain the loans — and kept the advance fees they charged would-be borrowers in local bank accounts for their own use, agents said.
Agents also said the three assured their victims the loans were in the works, and fended victims off when they called to learn about their loans.
“In or about January 2008, Chad Derousse told (a victim) that he should never call Rocket Processing again because it could jeopardize their deal,” agents said in the indictment.
The indictment also seeks forfeiture of the defendants’ real and personal property linked to the conspiracy.
Around the same time the three were indicted in 2009, President Barack Obama warned the public about similar recession-related advance-fee ruses, saying, “I just want everybody who is watching today to know that if somebody is asking you for money up front before they help you with your refinancing, it’s probably a scam.”
Officials with the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions offer advice in dealing with such situations. To learn more, visit http://dfi.wa.gov.
John Branton: 360-735-4513 or john.branton@columbian.com.
