Texas man sentenced after stealing $100,000 from smaller Montana banks

A Texas man was sentenced Wednesday after pleading guilty to stealing more than $100,000 from Montana banks by forging checks and stealing identities to defraud smaller banks.

Shanetwann Clayton Waldon, 46, of Dallas, Texas, pleaded guilty in August 2023 to bank fraud and aggravated identity theft. Waldon was sentenced to four years in prison followed by five years supervised release and ordered to pay $103,149 in restitution.

In collaboration with several co-defendants, Waldon traveled north from Texas to target smaller banks in Montana, Idaho and Wyoming, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Waldon targeted rural areas because they were a “little ‘country’ and the bank process was slower than in Texas,” according to the government.

Montana banks Waldon defrauded in part of the organized scheme included, according to the indictment:

• TrailWest Bank, Hamilton Main: $4,750
• First Security Bank, American Way: $4,600
• Farmers State Bank, Missoula: $4,799

Other defendants defrauded Valley Bank of Helena, Farmers State Bank in Florence, First Interstate Bank in Bozeman, among others, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. In total, Waldon and his codefendants stole $141,822 from 30 bank branches in three states.

Waldon owes a total of $103,149 payable to six Montana banks, including First Interstate Bank, TrailWest Bank, First Security Bank, Opportunity Bank of Montana, Farmers State Bank and Western Security Bank.