U.S. v. Shaid

Decision Date06 April 1984
Docket NumberNo. 83-2397,83-2397
PartiesUNITED STATES of America, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Orrin SHAID, Jr., Defendant-Appellant.
CourtU.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit

David Booth, Longview, Tex., for defendant-appellant.

Chris Harrison, Asst. U.S. Atty., Tyler, Tex., for plaintiff-appellee.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.

Before CLARK, Chief Judge, and POLITZ and JOHNSON, Circuit Judges.

JOHNSON, Circuit Judge.

In May of 1981, Orrin Shaid, Jr., a convicted bank swindler described by the prosecution as a "charismatic 300-pound east Texan", gained access to the Ranchlander National Bank in Melvin, Texas and masterminded an elaborate bank-fraud scheme that ultimately enabled him to generate a high-rolling life style including two Rolls Royces, a yacht known as the "African Queen", two airplanes, and a large lakehouse on fourteen acres. Shaid's scheme resulted in losses of over $778,000 to banks in the Texas cities of Abilene, Chandler, Corpus Christi, and Kilgore. Shaid's enjoyment of his east Texas Camelot, however, was shortlived, for today he comes before this Court convicted of nine counts of mail fraud, 1 eight counts of making false statements to a federally insured bank, 2 and two counts of entering a bank with intent to commit a felony. 3 We affirm Shaid's convictions on all counts and affirm the thirty-five year sentence given him.

I. THE BANK FRAUD SCHEME: FROM RAGS TO RICHES

In the summer of 1978 and 1979, Shaid was living in a trailer house on his father's property. Then, in the first part of 1982, Shaid expressed interest in buying the Ranchlander National Bank in Melvin, Texas. Because Shaid had been convicted previously of bank fraud, he could not obtain a bank in his own name, so he decided to place the bank in the name of Lynn Carruth Maree, a woman with whom Shaid lived and by whom he had a child.

In April 1982, Shaid approached Doyle Todd, then the president of the Ranchlander National Bank, posing as the financial consultant for Lynn Carruth Maree and offered to purchase the bank. On May 8, 1981, a purchase contract was signed in which Todd turned over control of the Ranchlander National Bank to Lynn Carruth Maree pending the approval of the transfer by the Comptroller of the Currency. In June of 1981, Todd was locked out of the bank by Shaid even though the actual purchase of the bank did not take place until September 4, 1981. The purchase price was paid in three checks in the amounts of $177,712.64, $1,197.00 and $7,115.00. Documentary evidence presented in the case demonstrated that Shaid was able to raise the funds for the purchase of the bank by buying two $1,000 CD's at the Ranchlander National Bank, altering them to $100,000 CD's, 4 and pledging these as collateral to secure a $200,000 loan from the Chandler State Bank in Chandler, Texas, on September 8, 1981.

Once in control of the Ranchlander National Bank, Shaid initiated a widespread scheme of fraudulent loans at the Ranchlander National Bank and banks across Texas. During trial, twenty witnesses testified and numerous documents were introduced. The evidence demonstrated how Shaid, on four separate occasions using four different pairs of altered CD's, 5 received or renewed $200,000 loans by pledging the altered CD's as collateral. In his ongoing scheme, Shaid would pay off loans as they came due using money obtained by forging additional CD's or by setting up false loans secured by nonexistent or overvalued collateral at the Ranchlander National Bank, which were then "participated" to other banks. 6

In March of 1982, Ms. Jean Moon, who had been installed by Shaid as president of the Ranchlander National Bank, decided to leave the bank because of Shaid's activities. When Shaid learned of her plans, he flew to the bank 7 and told her she could not quit--"She was in too deep." At this time, Shaid explained to her how he had been purchasing $1,000 CD's at the Ranchlander National Bank, altering them to $100,000 CD's and pledging these for loans at other lending institutions. Moon then became an active participant with Shaid in the fraudulent scheme. From March through November, Moon assisted Shaid in preparing the fraudulent CD's and, pursuant to Shaid's orders, made false responses to the victim banks' inquiries into the validity of the pledged CD's. By September 1982, Moon realized Shaid had no intention of paying off the fraudulent CD's as he kept pyramiding more and more fraudulent loans.

When Moon once again expressed concern, Shaid showed her a picture of a villa he had planned to purchase for one million dollars in Acapulco, Mexico and told her that she should relax and continue to hide the fraud from the bank examiners. Shaid told Moon that if anything did happen, he would take her to Acapulco with him. Finally, in November of 1982, Shaid phoned Moon and instructed her to destroy the records and microfilm at the Ranchlander National Bank. Instead, realizing that Shaid's departure was imminent, Moon drove to San Antonio, Texas, where she contacted FBI agents. After a lengthy FBI investigation, Shaid was charged in a nineteen count indictment and was convicted on all nineteen counts. 8 The district judge sentenced Shaid to a total of thirty-five years imprisonment.

II. THE MAIL FRAUD COUNTS (COUNTS ONE THROUGH NINE)

Initially, appellant argues that his conviction on four of the mail fraud counts (one, two, four, and six) alleging violations of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1341, must be overturned since the government failed to demonstrate that Shaid "caused" the mailings described in the respective counts. The "mailings" referred to relate to letters from the Chandler State Bank to the Ranchlander National Bank in which the Chandler State Bank sought verification of the validity and value of the pledged CD's. 9 Appellant's argument is without merit since, although appellant himself did not actually mail any of the documents referred to in these counts, it is apparent that he did cause the mailings to occur. We have held that when an individual does an act with the knowledge that the use of the mails will follow in the ordinary course of business, or when such use can reasonably be foreseen, even though not actually intended, then he/she "causes" the mails to be used. Nothing more is required to demonstrate that Shaid "caused" the mailings. See, Pereira v. United States, 347 U.S. 1, 74 S.Ct. 358, 363, 98 L.Ed. 435 (1954); United States v. Martino, 648 F.2d 367, 382 (5th Cir.1981); and United States v. Toney, 598 F.2d 1349, 1352-54 (5th Cir.1979).

During the course of the instant trial, it was shown that Shaid could reasonably foresee and did know that the victim banks would correspond through the mail to notify the Ranchlander National Bank that a number of Ranchlander CD's had been pledged by Shaid as collateral, and would seek verification of the CD's validity and value. Thus, although Shaid did not request the mailings, it is clear that he knew the victim banks, in the ordinary course of their business, would use the mails to seek verification of the CD's. Moreover, several witnesses testified that the appellant fully understood the operation of a bank. Indeed, Shaid met with other bankers in Texas on numerous occasions and several of them testified that he appeared to have complete working knowledge of the banking business.

Simply put, the record demonstrates that Shaid could reasonably foresee and did know that his pledging of the $100,000 CD's (which were altered $1,000 CD's) would result in the victim bank making inquiries and seeking written verification of the CD's, that a major portion of this correspondence would be by mail, that Shaid made detailed plans to respond to these letters, 10 and that as a result of these responses he kept the victim banks from learning the true value of the fraudulent CD's and of the fraudulent scheme.

Appellant next argues that none of the mailings described in counts one through seven "implemented" the scheme because the mailings occurred after the appellant had received control of the money. 11 Under appellant's theory, once a defendant obtains the money, subsequent mailings cannot be used as mail fraud counts. This theory fails, however, since the result of the mailings was to "delay any legal action or complaints to governmental authorities concerned with frauds, thereby prolonging the life of the fraudulent scheme." United States v. Toney, 598 F.2d 1349 (5th Cir.1979). As this Court stated in Toney:

It is well settled that such 'lulling' mailings are mailings in execution of the fraudulent scheme for Sec. 1341 purposes .... Postpurchase mailings which are designed to lull the victim into a false sense of security, postpone inquiries or complaints, or make the transaction less suspect are mailings in furtherance of the scheme. United States v. Ashdown, 509 F.2d 793, 800 (5th Cir.) cert. denied 423 U.S. 829 [96 S.Ct. 48, 46 L.Ed.2d 47] (1975).

United States v. Toney, 598 at 1353.

The mailings from the victim banks were inquiries into the substance and validity of the pledged CD's; they had no other purpose. The responses from the Ranchlander National Bank were designed specifically to keep the victim banks from learning the true status of the collateral, and, thus, were intended to have--and had--a lulling effect. Hence, it is clear that these lulling letters sufficed to establish violations of 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1341.

Appellant also contends that the district court improperly imposed consecutive sentences on counts one through seven, since only one mail fraud scheme was involved. However, as the facts indicate, Shaid's elaborate scheme involved the use of fraudulent CD's on numerous occasions 12 and resulted in several fraudulent loans. It is well established that each use of the mails is a separate offense under the mail fraud statute and that consecutive sentences may be imposed properly, even if the mailings...

To continue reading

Request your trial
48 cases
  • U.S. v. Shaid
    • United States
    • U.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit
    • 5 Agosto 1991
    ... ... Sec. 2255 without demonstrating cause for his failure to raise the error at trial or on direct appeal. Because we find no exception to the Frady cause and prejudice standard that would allow us to grant collateral relief in this case absent a showing of cause, we affirm the district court's denial of the prisoner's Sec. 2255 motion. See United States v. Frady, 456 U.S. 152, 102 S.Ct. 1584, 71 L.Ed.2d 816 (1982) (applying the Wainwright v. Sykes, 433 U.S. 72, 97 S.Ct. 2497, 53 L.Ed.2d 594 ... ...
  • US v. Mavroules, Crim. No. 92-10243-MA.
    • United States
    • U.S. District Court — District of Massachusetts
    • 30 Marzo 1993
    ...of each false document constituted a crime, and each filing may be alleged in a separate count of the indictment. United States v. Shaid, 730 F.2d 225, 231 (5th Cir.), cert. denied 469 U.S. 844, 105 S.Ct. 151, 83 L.Ed.2d 89 (1984) (interpreting 18 U.S.C. § 1014, which makes it an offense to......
  • U.S. v. Shaid
    • United States
    • U.S. Court of Appeals — Fifth Circuit
    • 24 Octubre 1990
    ...Shaid received an enhanced sentence. The facts of that case are set out in our opinion affirming his conviction. See United States v. Shaid, 730 F.2d 225 (5th Cir.), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 844, 105 S.Ct. 151, 83 L.Ed.2d 89 As a result of the 1982 conviction, a parole violator detainer was l......
  • Randall Book Corp. v. State
    • United States
    • Maryland Court of Appeals
    • 1 Septiembre 1987
    ...of five years imprisonment for each of three counts of mail fraud, to be served consecutively, not cruel and unusual); United States v. Shaid, 730 F.2d 225 (5th Cir.1984) (consecutive sentences for nine counts of mail fraud not cruel and Considering all of the relevant factors in this case,......
  • Request a trial to view additional results

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT