Ex-trucking school director gets continuance in fraud trial

A U.S. District judge granted a continuance for an Arizona truck driving school’s former director, who is accused of embezzling more than $900,000.

The trial for Robert Alan Knapp was moved from Feb. 13 to April 17 after Knapp’s attorneys requested to have the plea deadline delayed and to have more time to prepare for a trial. The plea deadline was extended until March 30.

Knapp, who was the director of HDS Truck Driving School in Tucson, Ariz., was charged with 10 counts of bank fraud, five counts of aggravated identity theft and one count of federal student aid fraud. Knapp entered a not guilty plea on Sept. 1.

According to the indictment filed on Aug. 16, “Knapp developed and intended to develop a scheme and artifice to defraud one or more financial institutions and to obtain money they owned or controlled, including money that represented the proceeds of a federal student financial aid assistance program.”

The indictment accused Knapp intercepting checks drawn on the HDS bank account that were supposed to be payable to students for financial aid and to students who were owed a tuition refund from HDS.

“After intercepting these checks, Knapp deposited them to his Wells Fargo bank account after adding a forged indorsement,” the indictment alleged. “Knapp also caused HDS to generate checks drawn on its J.P. Morgan Chase bank account to pay fictitious financial obligations he created to HDS’ students or the entities paying their tuition, which Knapp then intercepted and deposited to his Wells Fargo bank account after adding a forged indorsement. Finally, Knapp also intercepted checks made payable to HDS from various third parties and deposited them to his Wells Fargo bank account.”

Knapp is accused of depositing and converting to his own use and benefit more than $900,000 from 2008 to 2015.