Former Kansas bank’s CEO charged in $47.1 million embezzlement

TOPEKA — The former CEO of a shuttered southwest Kansas bank has been charged with embezzling millions from the financial institution before it closed.

Shan Hanes, an Elkhart resident, served as the CEO of Heartland Tri-State Bank until the bank went defunct in July.

At the time, Kansas banking commissioner David Herndon said the bank had become insolvent due to a “huge scam,” though he didn’t provide any details of what any potential crimes entailed.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation took control of the bank’s operations. It reopened in July under the Dream First Bank name after the FDIC brokered a deal to transfer bank operations to that organization.

On Monday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Kansas announced that Hanes, 52, was charged on one count of bank embezzlement. Hanes is accused of embezzling about $47.1 million through a series of wire transfers between May and July 2023, purchasing cryptocurrency for himself with the funds, according to court documents.

Hanes will appear in court Feb. 28. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison.

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