Naperville man gets 4 years for bank thefts

A Naperville man was sentenced Friday to four years in prison for stealing nearly $275,000 from his employer to feed a gambling addiction.

An apologetic Michael "Brad" Hayes, 41, sought leniency after citing his efforts to get help with the support of family, friends and his church.

In rejecting probation, DuPage Circuit Judge Kathryn Creswell questioned why the former bank-loan originator had not reduced his living expenses or paid back "a dime of restitution" in the 18 months since his arrest.

Hayes, of 308 W. Bailey Road, faced up to 15 years behind bars. He must serve half the four-year term before being eligible for parole.

Prosecutor Ken Tatarelis said Hayes used the trust he had built during nearly 10 years of employment at Mid-America Bank in Naperville to get unsuspecting tellers to issue him checks from a wealthy friend's home equity line of credit for 16 months until July 2006, when the scheme was uncovered.

Two bank employees were fired for not following procedure. Hayes would either cash the checks or deposit them into his own personal bank account.

"Blaming it on gambling is just an excuse," Tatarelis said in urging a seven-year prison term. "The defendant clearly made a conscious decision to become a thief. This isn't an impulsive offense. It was well planned."

Hayes' criminal history includes two prior drunken-driving offenses. Three months ago, Hayes pleaded guilty to felony theft for the bank crime.

His attorney, Christopher Wheaton, asked the judge to give Hayes another chance. More than a half-dozen relatives, friends and church members testified or wrote letters describing Hayes as a dedicated husband and father who is working two jobs to make amends, including scrubbing toilets and other maintenance at his church.

"He's a good man who did a bad thing," Wheaton argued. "He was living a lie. It's (the gambling addiction) not an excuse but it does provide us with some explanation. He was trying to dig himself out of a hole but kept getting deeper and deeper in debt."

Hayes has been involved in a treatment program and hasn't gambled in 18 months, his lawyer said. Hayes apologized and asked the judge for a second chance.

"I am a work in progress," he said. "I've made great strides. I am trying to rebuild my life with a new career from the bottom up. I am full of hope and ask that I may continue on this path."

Hayes must begin repaying $274,126.01 in restitution upon his release from prison. He was taken into immediate custody Friday.