Ex-CEO of a Bank in America Trapped in Pig-Butchering Scam and Sentenced 24 Years in Prison for Embezzling Bank Funds

In August, Shan Hanes, a 53-year-old man, was sentenced by a court in the United States to 24 years and five months in prison.

Hanes was the CEO of Heartland Tri-State Bank, a small local bank that shut down last year.

According to court documents, in December 2022, Hanes was subjected to a pig-buchering scam on WhatsApp. He met and trusted a stranger online. Later, the stranger persuaded him to participate in cryptocurrency investments.

At first, Hanes only invested his own money, but later, he misappropriated the money in the bank to “invest”, and ended up with nothing.

In order to “make quick money” with cryptocurrencies, he used his position to embezzle funds from the Elkhart Church of Christ and the Santa Fe Investment Club., and even his own daughter's preparatory funds for college. Within just eight weeks, he embezzled bank deposits 11 times.

In addition, as CEO of the bank, he forced employees to help him embezzle funds. Under pressure, the employees were afraid to speak out.

In July 2023, the bank's Chief Financial Officer reported Hanes' behavior to the Kansas Office of the State Bank Commissioner. An audit found that $47,105,000 were missing from the bank, exceeding the bank's capital. Due to the shortfall, the bank collapsed.

The FBI managed to track one of the cryptocurrency wallets involved and recovered about $8 million.