OXFORD — John Coleman, the disgraced president of defunct Express Grain Terminals, has pleaded guilty to one federal count of wire fraud for his role in cheating farmers and other creditors out of millions of dollars.
Coleman entered his plea Thursday before U.S. District Judge Michael P. Mills. A sentencing date has been set for June 13.
Coleman faces up to 30 years in prison, five years of supervised release, a $1 million fine and restitution to those who lost money when the grain-processing company collapsed in what prosecutors claimed was a scheme of financial deceit carried out by Coleman.
Click on Title To Read Document
Coleman had originally been charged by federal prosecutors with six counts of wire fraud but reached a deal to plead guilty to just one count. According to the plea agreement, which was signed on Feb. 8, the other five counts will be dismissed following the sentencing.
Coleman made no extensive comments during the 20-minute hearing. He remains free on bond.
U.S. Prosecutor Clay Dabbs spoke the most during the hearing, detailing the fraud charge that Coleman had agreed to plead guilty on. He concluded his remarks saying, “No promises have been made regarding the punishment. The defendant is guilty.”
Mills then asked Coleman if he understood the charge and the government’s case against him.
Coleman replied, “Yes.”
Express Grain’s bankruptcy filing in 2021 was a stunning event that marked the beginning of the end for the Greenwood-based company.
As the bankruptcy proceedings went on, it was revealed that the company had submitted altered financial documents to its chief lender, UMB Bank of Kansas City, Missouri, and state regulators that disguised Express Grain’s precarious condition. More than 200 farmers attested to not being paid for their grain deliveries, and Coleman was accused of misleading them about the company’s financial stability.
According to the plea deal, Coleman agreed to the indictment’s charge that he “did devise and intend to devise a scheme to defraud Farmers, UMB Bank, and the Mississippi State Board of Agriculture, and to obtain money by means of false and fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises.”
Express Grain’s processing and grain-storage facilities were sold to other operators during its liquidation.
Coleman still faces six state charges — five counts of making false statements and one count of false pretense. The plea agreement does not prevent the state case from going forward. It is presently set to go to trial April 16.
- Contact Jeff Byrd at 662-581-7239 or jbyrd@gwcommonwealth.com. Editor Tim Kalich contributed to this report.
