We’re to liken the scriptures to ourselves.  (1 Ne. 19:23).  The scriptures also tell us that there is nothing new under the sun.  (Eccl. 1:9).  This week I was told of two stories of bank fraud, couldn’t sleep last night because of them, got up and read my Book of Mormon, and found myself reading of the exact situation in the scriptures.

First the background.

Brent Kerns says that he caught his bank in fraud.  Last year his operating budget amounted to $1.5 million.  As he was driving down the road several weeks ago it suddenly hit him in a moment of revelation that something was wrong with the half-million-dollar figure that he’d paid that year in interest.  Ten percent of $1.5 million would be $150,000.  His loan was made at only 7% interest.  Things didn’t compute.  Brent told his son, Logan.  Logan spent the evening researching and gathering figures, and then they laid the matter before the bank.

Community Bank took a month to determine that an error had been made.  They informed Brent that they had credited $30,000 back to his account.  Subsequently they credited another $70,000 to his account.  No word of apology was offered.  Brent thinks there is still as much as $300,000 that they owe him.

I said, “Sue them.”  Brent said they went to a lawyer who agreed that they might win the case if they did so.  Brent also went to their accountant who told him there are three people you just have to trust, because you really don’t know what they do.  One is your banker, and the others are your lawyer and your accountant.  He added that in the industry anything up to a 15% discrepancy can be considered an error, but that anything beyond that is fraud.  Community Bank is very much into the category of fraud.

I went to my banker friend, Deryl Leggett, who handles agricultural loans for Old West Federal Credit Union.  I told him Brent’s story.  He said that Community Bank had been caught in fraud last year, and that the CEO, a couple of directors, and several others had lost their jobs.  The problem, however, is apparently still alive and well.

Deryl then told me about a man who recently came to him for help.  The man’s mother had faithfully made her house payments every month, and had never been late.  She became ill.  Her son quit his job in California and moved back to Baker to take care of her.  He found another job, took over the house payment, and cared for his mother until she passed away.  The house then became his.  Sometime later he received notice from Bank of America that they were going to foreclose on the house.  He initially ignored the notice, since it was obviously an error.

It soon became apparent that the bank was serious.  They were proceeding with foreclosure.  The man spent days on the phone being put on hold as the bank’s automated phone system shuffled him fruitlessly from one person to another who was unable to help him.

Finally he went to attorney, Milo Pope.  Milo went through the same phone shuffle routine.  He then instructed the man to go to Deryl, and to get a new loan with which to pay Bank of America off.  At this point there was just one month left before foreclosure happened.

The new loan was put in place just days before foreclosure; but two days before foreclosure, Bank of America sent a letter saying an error had been made, and that they weren’t foreclosing after all.  However, the default interest that had accrued since the loan had been declared to be in default was still owing.  It amounted to over $8,000.  It was not forgiven.  The Bank of America loan was repaid, along with the fraudulent interest.

Deryl said that Bank of America and Wells Fargo have both paid multi-millions of dollars over the last year to repay fraudulent situations such as this.

The idea that such evil, scheming people could be running our nation’s big corporations and government is very unsettling to me.  It woke me at 1:00, and I was unable to get my mind onto anything else.  I got up to read.  I continued where I’d left off in the Book of Mormon.  Here is what I read:

“And it came to pass when (Ammon and his brethren) arrived in the borders of the land of the Lamanites, that they separated themselves and departed one from another, trusting in the Lord that they should meet again at the close of their harvest; for they supposed that great was the work which they had undertaken.

“And assuredly it was great, for they had undertaken to preach the word of God to a wild and a hardened and a ferocious people; (they apparently had bankers back in those days, too) who delighted in murdering the Nephites, and robbing and plundering them; and their hearts were set upon riches, or upon gold and silver, and precious stones; yet they sought to obtain these things by murdering and plundering, that they might not labor for them with their own hands.”  (Alma 17: 13-14).

Can you imagine trying to preach the word of God to Wall Street bankers and government officials?  You’d have more success trying to preach to a group of ferocious Islamists in Iraq.  “If only there was someone, and some way, to deal with these people,” I said to myself.

I read on.  Ammon became a servant to king Lamoni, and was assigned with others to watch the flocks of Lamoni.

“Therefore, as Ammon and the servants of the king were driving forth their flocks to (the) place of water, behold, a certain number of the Lamanites, who had been with their flocks to water, stood and scattered the flocks of Ammon and the servants of the king, and they scattered them insomuch that they fled many ways.”  (Alma 17:27).

“Now it was the practice of these Lamanites to stand by the waters of Sebus to scatter the flocks of the people, that thereby they might drive away many that were scattered unto their own land, it being a practice of plunder among them” (the bankers again).  (Alma 18:7).

At this point, instead of seeing Ammon, I saw Brent.  He encouraged his companions to gather their flocks again, and then said, “Encircle the flocks round about that they flee not; and I go and contend with these men who do scatter our flocks.

“Therefore, they did as Ammon (Brent) commanded them, and he went forth and stood to contend with those who stood by the waters of Sebus; and they were in number not a few.

“Therefore they did not fear (Brent), for they supposed that one of their men could slay him according to their pleasure, for they knew not that the Lord had promised Mosiah that he would deliver his sons out of their hands; neither did they know anything concerning the Lord; therefore they delighted in the destruction of their brethren (it amazes me that we still have such ignorant, mean-spirited people today, and that’s why I couldn’t sleep last night); and for this cause they stood to scatter the flocks of the king.

“But (Brent) stood forth and began to cast stones at them with his sling; yea, with mighty power he did sling stones amongst them; and thus he slew a certain number of them insomuch that they began to be astonished at his power; nevertheless they were angry because of the slain of their brethren, and they were determined that he should fall; therefore, seeing that they could not hit him with their stones, they came forth with clubs to slay him.

“But behold, every man that lifted his club to smite (Brent), he smote off their arms with his sword; for he did withstand their blows by smiting their arms with the edge of his sword, insomuch that they began to be astonished, and began to flee before him; yea, and they were not few in number; and he caused them to flee by the strength of his arm.

“Now six of them had fallen by the sling, but he slew none save it were their leader with his sword; and he smote off as many of their arms as were lifted against him, and they were not a few.”  (Alma 17: 33-38).

Brent says that his bank is called “Community Bank” because the community has to carry its borrowers until the bank gets around to renewing their borrowers’ operating loans each year.  Brent’s loan should be in place in January, but last year it took until June to get it approved and signed.  At that point Brent sat down and wrote out checks totaling half-a-million dollars to bring his fertilizer, fuel and seed accounts current.  These good people had been patiently carrying Brent’s, and others’, accounts until the bank saw fit to get their job done.

Brent says he can’t go after the bank until his current loan is approved, and until he gets his patient creditors paid.

I hope then that he stands and contends with these robbers and cuts off their arms.

Brent would be a formidable opponent.  Brent has integrity, sees things clearly, and expresses himself concisely.

The Russians, with whom he deals, asked him to place an order with Spudnik for all the potato equipment they’d need.  Brent ordered $23 million of equipment.  Spudnik told Brent that since he was acting in the place of an agent, they’d give him 10% of the sale.  That would amount to $2.3 million.

Brent thought about it, and realized this is what a kickback is.  This is where our politicians go wrong.  Brent refused the $2.3 million!  He told Spudnik to write the 10% off the Russians’ bill, and then he let the Russians know what he’d done.  “If the Russians want to reward me,” he said, “that would be one thing, but to have them be secretly charged 10% for my involvement is quite another.”

Brent also refused kickbacks from seed companies and others that would have amounted to nearly $5 million.  He did this while struggling financially himself, and while dealing with a crooked bank.  There is strength in integrity.  That bank had better watch out.