$6.7M Theft Lands Ex-Montgomery County Official In Prison

GERMANTOWN, MD — A former Montgomery County official who admitted to embezzling more than $6.7 million in county money has been sentenced to 15 years in prison.

In court on Thursday, Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge Cheryl McCally exceeded the state sentencing guidelines and ordered 59-year-old Byung Il "Peter" Bang to serve 15 years of jail time for wire and tax fraud, prosecutors said. The guidelines for his crimes called for up to two years in prison.

Last month, Bang was handed a four-year sentence in federal court for charges related to an elaborate embezzlement scheme. He will serve the four years of his first concurrently with his second sentence, said Montgomery County State's Attorney Office Spokesman Ramon Korionoff.

"Mr. Bang deserves this greater-than-guidelines sentence as (he) betrayed the public trust and took valuable resources which could have been used to serve the people of the county. Justice is served," Korionoff told Patch.

Bang was the chief operating officer of the Department of Economic Development for the county from 2010 to 2016. Within Bang's first year as department head, Montgomery County and South Korea agreed to create an incubator fund called Chungbuk Incubator Fund LLC. Federal officials said Bang opened four banks under the company's name and listed his home address as the business' address.

In a span of six years, the former department head fraudulently funneled $6.7 million from the county government to the bank accounts he created and managed, prosecutors said.

According to the Justice Department, $5.4 million came from the Montgomery County Department of Finance; $1.2 million came from the Maryland Economic Development Corporation; and $43,717 came from the Maryland Conference & Visitors Bureau.

Bang did not report those funds as income and owed the IRS $2.3 million in taxes.

"In the abstract, it is hard for a normal person to grasp what $6.7 million means. But when put in the context of paying for the refurbishing of five county libraries, or paying the training and salary for 55 police officers, or buying 13 new transit buses, it becomes clearer just how significant the level of harm really is from the defendant's crimes," state officials wrote in a memo.

On Nov. 16, the Germantown resident pleaded guilty to wire and tax fraud charges — saying that most of the funds were used to fuel his gambling addiction. Bang lost a majority of the money he stole at casinos, according to the memo. Despite losing most of the money, officials said Bang spent tens of thousands on dollars on a number of lavish expenses.

"The defendant spent over $14,000 on golf related expenses. This includes $10,000 for membership fees at Blue Mash Golf Course. The defendant had over $44,000 in vehicle expenses. Motor Vehicle Administration records shows the defendant purchased four cars over the time period of these crimes. He paid $8,600 for his lawn service. Expenses at clothing stores total over $14,000," the memo read.

In a statement, U.S. Attorney Robert K. Hur called him corrupt, saying he betrayed the public's trust.

"Mr. Bang lied to his colleagues, government officials and the IRS over an extended period of time. The $6.7 million that he embezzled deprived Montgomery County taxpayers of funds that could have been used for schools, libraries, and other expenditures, and harmed the County's reputation," Hur said. "Corrupt public employees undermine everyone's faith in government."

Bang, as part of his plea agreement, must "pay restitution in the full amount of the victims' losses, and to plead guilty in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, to the state charges of theft scheme over $100,000, and misconduct in office," the Justice Department said.