Ex-township leader to pay restitution for real estate fraud
July 5, 2018
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (AP) - A former township supervisor in western Michigan will serve five years' probation and pay restitution for misusing money in a real estate deal.
MLive.com reports ex-Plainfield Township official Jay Spencer was sentenced Tuesday in Grand Rapids on a charge of illegally engaging in private banking. He was ordered to pay $36,000 in restitution.
Court records show Jolan Jackson of Grandville invested $241,000 in 2011 with Spencer's Mackinac Realty Group to buy, renovate and sell homes.
Authorities say Spencer used as much as $40,000 on non-business-related items including personal expenses.
He apologized to Jackson in court and promised to pay the restitution quickly.
A 2016 larceny charge was dismissed. Prosecutors later charged him with embezzlement and false pretenses.
Spencer didn't seek re-election as supervisor in 2016 and left office that year.
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Information from: The Grand Rapids Press:MLive.com, http://www.mlive.com