BILLINGS (NMB) On September 7, 2022 a Fort Peck man was arraigned in U. S. District Court on allegations of committing mail fraud.
Bruce William Ferguson, 65, pleaded not guilty to four counts of mail fraud in a scheme to avoid the payment of monetary fees owed to the United States by means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises.
In court documents the government alleged beginning in or about May 2018 through in or about May 2020, Ferguson and codefendant made false reports and representations to the Bureau of Land Management regarding sales of cattle that grazed on the TwoCrow allotment but with no true sale or ownership transfer taking place.
He then submitted receipts to BLM and the American Rivers Reserve through the United States postal delivery service.
BLM investigated the case.
If convicted of the most serious crime, Ferguson faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised released.
