Kansas City business owners plead guilty to fraud
The owners of a Kansas City business who promised to help people resolve financial difficulties have pleaded guilty to defrauding their clients.
Federal prosecutors said that John Lee Norris and Julie Tina Hatcher were responsible for hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses to lenders and dozens of individuals. They operated under the business names Reaper Investment Partners, Hydra International and Death Productions.
Norris, 43, and Hatcher, 38, both of Kansas City, sought out people facing home foreclosure and other financial difficulties and promised to fix their problems in exchange for monthly payments. Instead, federal prosecutors said, they used the money for personal expenses.
They pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit fraud and mail fraud. Hatcher also pleaded guilty to a count of Social Security fraud.
Sentencing was scheduled for Sept. 19.
Tony Rizzo, trizzo@kcstar.com
This story was originally published May 29, 2014 at 1:20 PM with the headline "Kansas City business owners plead guilty to fraud."