An Illinois man was arrested in McCracken County this week and charged with passing a fraudulent check worth $160,000 to a local boat dealer, in what authorities say is one of the largest single check-fraud cases in the county's recent history.
The McCracken County Sheriff's Office identified the suspect as Marcus D. Ellison, 41, of Carbondale, Illinois. He was taken into custody on May 20th on charges of theft by deception over $10,000, a Class B felony in Kentucky, and criminal possession of a forged instrument.
According to investigators, Ellison presented the check to Western Kentucky Marine on U.S. Highway 60 West in early May as payment for two high-end pontoon boats. Dealership staff processed the sale and allowed Ellison to take possession of both vessels before the check was returned by the bank as fraudulent. The check was drawn on a business account that had been closed.
Detectives traced Ellison through vehicle registration records associated with the trailer used to haul the boats. By the time a warrant was issued, one of the boats had been recovered at a storage facility in Massac County, Illinois. The second remained unaccounted for as of press time.
Ellison was held on a $25,000 cash bond and appointed a public defender. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 4th. Western Kentucky Marine confirmed it has since implemented additional verification protocols for out-of-state buyers presenting checks for high-value purchases.
Theft by deception over $10,000 carries a potential prison sentence of five to ten years in Kentucky.