Cortney S. Valentine and Nicolette P. Valentine, husband and wife, both of Liberty, Utah, were sentenced on Tuesday for bank fraud, false declaration under penalty of perjury and concealment of assets in connection with a bankruptcy case, Acting U.S. Attorney Rafael Gonzalez announced in a press release yesterday. Senior U.S. District Judge Edward J. Lodge sentenced Cortney Valentine to 40 months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release and ordered restitution payable at a later date. Judge Lodge sentenced Nicolette Valentine to time served, to be followed by five years of supervised release, and 200 hours of community service and ordered restitution payable at a later date. Cortney Valentine pleaded guilty on November 1, 2016, and Nicolette Valentine pleaded guilty on June 23, 2016. According to Cortney Valentine’s plea agreement, he defrauded U.S. Bank when he made material false statements causing U.S. Bank to lend him $362,000. Later, Valentine and his wife, Nicolette, filed for relief under bankruptcy separately in different states. In November 2011, Cortney Valentine contracted to sell a home to a third party for $1,150,000. Cortney Valentine should have reported to the bankruptcy court any proceeds from the sale of the home. Instead, he used the money to support himself. Cortney Valentine made numerous false statements on the bankruptcy filings and concealed the funds he received from the third party purchaser.
