A federal grand jury in Portland has indicted three Oregon men accused of stealing checks, altering the payee lines and dollar amounts, and funneling the proceeds through a sham trucking company before banks could catch on. Cody James VanWinkle, 30, of Gresham; Kei-Jian Buckley, 32, of Beaverton; and Bruce Edward Jones Jr., 30, of Eugene, each face charges including conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
According to ktvz.com, the indictment alleges the three men stole or obtained stolen checks and altered the payee lines and dollar amounts so they could be deposited into accounts they controlled. Prosecutors say VanWinkle and Buckley formed a limited liability company called Pacific Swift Logistics that they describe as a sham business used to help conceal the scheme, as reported by koin.com.
How the Alleged Scheme Moved Money
Court documents cited by the same report indicate VanWinkle, Buckley and Jones agreed around August 2025 to commit bank fraud, then stole checks, altered them, and deposited the fraudulent instruments into various accounts. The men also allegedly recruited other people to open bank accounts and directed fraudulently obtained funds into those recruited account holders' accounts. Per the indictment, the group withdrew cash immediately after transfers or deposits, timing the withdrawals before financial institutions could flag the transactions and halt the money.
Prosecutors allege that on August 25, 2025, VanWinkle deposited a fraudulent check for $7,686 into a Key Bank account. The following spring, Buckley allegedly made a fraudulent $9,800 wire transfer into a Peak Credit Union account in April 2026, then made another fraudulent transfer of $19,500 into the same account. In June 2026, Buckley and Jones allegedly deposited a fraudulent check for $28,000 into a Heritage Bank account.
Jones Accused of Targeting Separate Institutions
Jones is separately accused of attempting to defraud Key Bank and Emerald Empire Federal Credit Union, allegedly depositing multiple stolen checks ranging from $2,000 to $20,000. VanWinkle and Buckley made their first court appearance on Tuesday in Portland and pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, three counts of bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Jones made his first court appearance on September 24, entering a not guilty plea to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, 10 counts of bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering, the koin.com report noted.
All three men have been released pending further court proceedings, and the case is scheduled for trial on November 24 in Portland.
Check Fraud a Growing National Concern
The scheme described in the indictment fits a pattern federal regulators have flagged as a persistent problem nationally. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has reported receiving 15,417 Bank Secrecy Act reports from 841 financial institutions tied to mail theft-related check fraud, amounting to more than $688 million in reported suspicious activity, according to fincen.gov. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency describes check fraud broadly as the alteration, counterfeiting or theft of checks used to unlawfully withdraw money, per occ.treas.gov.
