A federal judge has granted partial acquittals to two men convicted last year by a jury of running a credit-card scam for Boulder’s failed BestBank.
Glenn Gallant and Doug las Baetz, both of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., still face at least 10 years in prison. A sentencing date has not been set.
In an order Friday, U.S. District Judge Richard Matsch threw out convictions on 27 of 63 counts, saying the government failed to prove the charges.
Matsch, however, upheld the jury’s guilty verdicts on the remaining counts, including continuing financial crimes enterprise. That count carries a minimum of 10 years in prison and had been the primary target of the defendants’ attorneys in seeking acquittals.
Matsch also denied the government’s demand that the men return $11.4 million each in ill- gotten gains, saying the amount cannot exceed $8.3 million.
U.S. attorney spokesman Jeff Dorschner said the acquittals will not have a significant effect on the men’s potential sentences.
Attorneys for Gallant and Baetz declined to comment Monday.
Gallant and Baetz were convicted in August for their role in the failure of BestBank in 1998. Their company, Century Financial Services Inc., operated a credit-card scheme for BestBank that preyed on low- income customers.
Regulators declared BestBank insolvent in July 1998 and closed the bank, even as Colorado’s economy was booming. It was the first bank default in the state in five years and one of the largest in the U.S. for a decade.
Former BestBank officials Edward Mattar of Florida, Thomas Alan Boyd of Niwot and Jack Grace of California, also facing fraud charges, will be tried beginning July 10.
Staff writer Greg Griffin can be reached at 303-820-1241 or ggriffin@denverpost.com.
