Topeka man ordered to repay bank $185K for failing to pay back loans

TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) - A Topeka man has been ordered to pay $185,000 in restitution for failing to repay loans to a Shawnee Co. bank.

Justin Vasquez, 41, of Topeka, was sentenced on three felony counts of impairing a security interest by the Shawnee Co. District Court. A judge sentenced Vasquez to pay a Shawnee Co. Bank $184,936 and 12 months of probation.

Following an investigation conducted by a Special Agent with the Livestock/Brand Investigation Unit within Attorney General Derek Schmidt’s office, Vasquez was discovered to have secured loans equaling about $416,000 between May 2017 and December 2017 to purchase cattle. According to Schmidt’s office, the terms of the loans required Vasquez to use the proceeds from the cattle sales to pay back the loans.

However, Schmidt’s office said that Vasquez sold the cattle between June 2017 and June 2019 but did not pay back the loan. Initially, he told the bank that the cattle had been stolen, but later admitted they were sold.

In November 2022, Vasquez pleaded no contest to the charges. Deputy Attorney General Stacy Edwards of Schmidt’s office prosecuted this case.