A former Tooele branch manager of Zions First National Bank has been sentenced to one year in prison for defrauding the bank of $1.8 million.
Richard Carl Mouritsen also was ordered Wednesday by U.S. District Judge David Sam to make full restitution to the bank.The judge received letters of support from friends and clients of the 43-year-old father of seven, and the sentence was more lenient than recommended by prosecutor Tena Campbell.
Under federal sentencing rules, Mouritsen's offense called for a 30- to 37-month imprisonment. Campbell suggested several months less, citing Mouritsen's cooperation in an investigation of others in the scandal.
Sam said Mouritsen should not be "warehoused" long in prison because he is unlikely to repeat such a crime.
Mouritsen, who has a degree in bank finance, said little Wednesday. He was fired by Zions in November 1991. By then, he had shepherded a series of secret and illegal transactions for the failing business interests of a friend, David Brockbank.