Farmer Pleads Guilty to Lying About Valor, Access to Loans

Christopher Jordan Bailey, 28, of Brentwood, the owner of C. Bailey Farms, has pled guilty in United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire to charges of bank fraud, false statements on a loan application, and stolen valor, according to a press statement from United States Attorney John P. Kacavas.

The bank fraud and false loan application charges arose from Bailey’s submissions of false information to a series of nine banks and government agencies to induce them to grant, extend or modify agricultural-related loans, according to prosecutors.

The stolen valor charge arose from false claims Bailey made to the effect that he had served in the U.S. Marine Corps and been awarded a Purple Heart, Silver Star and combat action ribbon, for the purpose of inducing the financial institutions to approve his loan applications.

Bailey faces a maximum term 30 years in prison on each of the bank fraud and false statement charge and one year on the stolen valor charge. Sentencing is scheduled for July 28, 2015.

This case was investigated by the Manchester Field Office of the U.S. Secret Service and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of Inspector General, with the assistance of the Portsmouth Police Department. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Morse.