Sentencing For Man In $300 Million Resort Fraud

KEY WEST, Fla. (AP) — A former resort company president is facing what amounts to a potential life sentence for his conviction in a $300 million vacation rental scam.

A federal judge in Key West is scheduled Monday to sentence Fred Davis “Dave” Clark Jr., who was convicted Dec. 11 of bank fraud, false statements and obstruction. He is former chief of now-defunct Cay Clubs Resorts and Marinas, which prosecutors say defrauded some 1,400 investors.

Testimony showed Clark defrauded banks in a scheme to get rich by selling purported luxury condominium units in the Florida Keys and elsewhere. Prosecutors said he was also involved in a fraudulent pawn shop operation in the Caribbean.

The defense had contended the financial recession was behind Clark’s financial problems, not fraud. Clark’s lawyers are seeking a more lenient sentence.