Gary Vehlewald, 39, who owned Vehlewald Construction, Inc., in O'Fallon, has pleaded guilty to bank fraud involving the Springwell Village development in St. Charles.

Vehlewald was a residential developer doing business under the names of Springwell Village Development and Vehlewald Construction, Inc., according to a Feb. 17 news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for Eastern Missouri.

In 2006, he secured loans from Premier Bank for the purchase of 11 acres. The land was to have been developed into a housing community known as Springwell Village.

In addition, Vehlewald entered into a loan agreement with Premier Bank for construction of eight single-family residences, according to the release.

Premier Bank loaned Vehlewald Construction approximately $3.9 million for the construction and land development of Springwell Village. The bank later discovered Vehlewald used Springwell Village loan disbursements for uses other than that represented in the loan-disbursement requests, including work that had not been completed and for payment to subcontractors and employees who performed work at other Vehlewald Construction projects, according to the news release.

Sentencing has been set for May 15. Bank fraud carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison and fines up to $1 million. The FBI investigated the case.