Iowa Man Sentenced Four Months Federal Prison $140K Fraud Pokémon Cards

Mitch William Gross, a 34-year-old Iowa man, was sentenced to four months in federal prison for defrauding his employer, Ruan Transportation Corporation, out of more than $140,000 by using company credit cards for personal purchases including prepaid gift cards, Pokémon cards, and gaming items. Gross falsified receipts and mischaracterized these charges on expense reports to make them appear as legitimate business expenses between September 2021 and October 2022. He has been ordered to pay $146,590.15 in restitution and will serve a three-year term of supervised release following his prison sentence, as there is no parole in the federal system. The case was investigated by the FBI and local police, and the sentencing was announced by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Iowa.