By David Fleet
Editor
An area resident and former business owner was sentenced to prison for embezzling millions of dollars from area families.
Jason K. Bescoe, 48, was sentenced May 29 by Genesee Circuit Judge Richard B. Yuille to a minimum of 45 months in prison to a maximum of 20 years, with credit for 238 days served.
According to court records from the 7th Circuit Court, Bescoe pleaded guilty in October 2018 to two felony counts of embezzlement of over $100,000. The plea deal included the payment of $2,484,684 in restitution.
“Embezzlement cases can be complex with thousands of documents and records to sort through, analyze, and piece together,” said David Leyton, Genesee County prosecutor. “I’m pleased that with a lot of hard work by my staff and investigators from the Genesee County Sheriff Office Elder Abuse Task Force we were able to convict Jason Bescoe and hold him accountable for his actions while at the same time securing restitution for victims who had stood to lose a lot of their hard earned money.”
In July 2017 Genesee County Sheriff Department executed four search warrants, three in Atlas Township and one in Grand Blanc Township, following a month-and-a-half long investigation of a suspected Ponzi scheme. Computers, files, and other electronic data were removed from the four locations. Bescoe purchased the Atlas Valley Country Club in November 2016.

Genesee County Sheriff Undersheriff Chris Swanson said the warrants were issued by Judge Nathaniel C. Perry, III for Atlas Valley Country Club and homes in Atlas Township. In addition, a search warrant was issued on Grand Blanc-based Research Money Management on Tri Park Drive.
The investigation came from the Elder Abuse Task Force with a tip from the family of a senior citizen that led to the search warrants. The investigation required hundreds of hours. Warrants authorized by the prosecutor’s office were obtained for homes, businesses, and bank records for multiple state and national financial institutions and brokerage houses.
The Elder Abuse Task Force addresses abuse and financial exploitation of Genesee County seniors. Specially trained investigators, prosecutors, and social-workers under the direction of the probate court are dedicated to investigating and prosecuting allegations involving local seniors. The force has been in operation since 2008.
“Lieutenant Kariann Nelson spearheaded this investigation and is largely responsible for bringing Bescoe to justice,” said Genesee County Sheriff Robert Pickell. “She and the Chief Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, Tamara Phillips, worked closely together with search warrants for a significant number of properties throughout the entire State, as well as, other states. I am proud of the work that Lieutenant Nelson and Phillips performed during this extensive-intensive investigation.”