Youngstown man facing federal charges

YOUNGSTOWN — A man with a history of defrauding banks with counterfeit checks has been charged again with the same scheme.

An information was filed today in Cleveland federal court that charges Wickie Tutt Jr., 37, of Youngstown with aiding and abetting bank fraud. An information means the defendant has waived his right to indictment by a grand jury and, in nearly all cases, reached a plea agreement with the government.

The government said that, between April and May 2007, Tutt devised a scheme to defraud Sky Bank, Home Savings and Loan, National City Bank and Citizens Bank in the Youngstown area by producing 36 counterfeit checks that totaled $39,965. The checks were then distributed to others who cashed the checks, court papers show.