Roughly 10 years have passed since Billy Ray Thomas and Eulice “Trey” Alvey III first teamed up to defraud Neches Federal Credit Union of more than $1 million but, with the wheels of justice in a slow roll, neither have been sentenced to any penalty for their crimes – even though both admitted guilt in the scheme last year.
In the Jefferson County 252nd District Court on March 17, Alvey again walked free of custody – with an agreement to finalize a separate charge of state prosecution when the federal agency finalizes the judicial process that has been pending against Alvey and co-conspirator Thomas since 2023. The county case against Alvey alleges that, while on federal bond for bank theft in excess of $1 million, Alvey collected an added charge of forging a financial instrument to defraud roughly $300,000 or more in April 2024.
Delving into the multi-year, multi-count fraud committed against the local credit union, Thomas was working as a manager for the financial institution when he and Alvey embarked on a long-term conspiracy that began in 2015 and was caught by the credit union in 2018. As recited in court documents, “beginning on or about a date unknown, but as early as January 2015, and continuing through on or about February 2018, … Billy Ray Thomas and Eulice Emerson Alvey a/k/a Trey, along with others both known and unknown, did knowingly and willfully combine, conspire, confederate and agree to … execute and attempt to execute a scheme and artifice to obtain money, funds, assets, securities, and other property owned by and under the custody and control of an insured financial institution by means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises.”
In short, the pair falsified loan applications, at times pulling loans in the names of credit union clients not associated with the scheme, at other times securing loans with large equipment that both knew did not exist, defrauding Neches Federal Credit Union a total of $1,172,201.31.
“During the course of the scheme and artifice, Thomas, as an Assistant Branch Manager of NFCU, Pearl Branch, developed a working relationship with NFCU customers by providing them with loans for personal matters and to improve their credit score,” the indictment detailed. “Thomas would then use their personal identifying information and credit scores to execute loans for bank customers without their consent and knowledge.
“The proceeds of these loans would be used for Thomas’ personal and business matters.”
Alvey would aid the conspiracy by falsifying documents that purport large sales to and from the business he managed, Oil City Tractors in Beaumont, and connections to DLLC Finance Company. In return, Alvey collected in excess of $771,000, the indictment further indicated, all on top of the money loss attributed to co-conspirator Thomas.
Neches FCU investigators put a stop to the conspiracy in 2018, forwarding their findings to the federal government for prosecution. It took an additional five years before the Department of Justice secured an indictment in the matter.
After securing an indictment in December 2023, federal prosecutors were before Magistrate Judge Zack Hawthorn in January 2024, accepting the defendants’ pleas of “not guilty” and terms of pre-trial release (bond). Motion upon motion, and extension upon extension, was presented and granted until, in April 2024, Thomas pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. In August 2024, Alvey pleaded guilty to the same.
Despite Alvey admitting guilt and signing a (currently sealed) plea agreement with federal prosecutors in August 2024, the accused was indicted the very next month for additional fraudulent acts allegedly committed while on federal pre-trial release, commonly referred to as “bond.”
For the encore fraud, Alvey allegedly leaned on prior experience in falsifying invoices. As shown in indictment filings, Alvey is accused of changing the name of Oil City Tractors to that of Oil City Lawn and Garden, to again try to obtain financing by using collateral that didn’t exist – all while on federal bond.
“It is further alleged that the defendant engaged in the conduct to obtain a service, namely a loan, and the value of the service was $150,000 or more but less than $300,000,” the indictment reads – for one of the frauds. A total of five fraudulent loans were proffered in the indictment, amounting to more than a quarter-million dollars. “And the defendant obtained the amounts pursuant to one scheme or continuing course of conduct that began on or about July 11, 2023, and continued until on or about January 24, 2024.”
March 17, in court for the state charge earned while on federal bond, Alvey’s defense attorneys James Makin and Layne Walker laughed with presiding Judge Raquel West about the indefinite time as to when the federal case will be finalized.
“Somewhere between 30 days and three years,” the group agreed, was par for the course. Whenever the federal case ends, the state case will be shortly behind in conclusion, all further agreed.
Although Alvey and Thomas admitted guilt in federal proceedings, the court has yet to accept the guilty plea agreement – and won’t revisit the issue until a pre-sentence report is finalized. The pre-sentence report was indeed final as of Feb. 3; however, legal maneuvering by Thomas’ attorney, Marsha Normand, resulted in an undated extension of time to file opposition to the report.
“Mr. Thomas recently suffered a stroke that caused significant damage to the left side of his body. He has had difficulty traveling and just recently was able to meet with counsel to review the report,” Normand swore. “Additionally, the report has not yet established the amount of restitution to be attributed to each defendant.
“Counsel would request additional time to receive the restitution amounts, to review the report based upon meeting with the defendant, and to respond/ object to the report.
“Counsel has attempted to confer with Assistant United States Attorney Reynaldo Morin, who was unavailable.”
Absent a rebuttal from the prosecution, the court granted the request. As of now, no dates are posted for when Normand’s filing is due – or when the defendants will face justice for the crimes in which they admitted guilt.
Federal conspiracy to commit bank fraud and bank fraud penalty delegation is imprisonment of not more than 30 years; the greater of a fine not to exceed $1,000,000, a fine not to exceed two times the gross gain to the defendant, or a fine not to exceed two times the loss to the victim, or both such imprisonment and fine; and a term of supervised release of not more than five years.
Before federal prosecutors ever scored the multi-pronged indictment against Alvey and Thomas in December 2023, a civil case against Alvey pertaining to similar fraud was already resolved in a federal civil proceeding. As a result of the litigation, CNHI Capital America LLC currently possesses a federal judgment against Alvey, Angela Alvey, Oil City Tractors, and Mowers and Tractors Inc. for $550,000, plus 4.7% interest, for breach of contract in defaulting in payment for $740,000 worth of financed equipment.