Former lawyer pleads guilty to conspiracy

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- The former in-house counsel for Stevens Financial Group of Springfield has pleaded guilty to conspiring to obstruct a national bank examination.

James Scott Pope, 41, entered the guilty plea Tuesday in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri.

According to court documents, Pope conspired with others to obstruct efforts of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to monitor Sinclair National Bank, which Stevens Financial was trying to acquire.

Stevens Financial, a financial services firm, filed for bankruptcy in 2001, leaving about 2,900 investors with more than $60 million in losses.

The conspiracy charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000. A sentencing date has not been set.

Last week Pope pleaded guilty to two state counts of submitting false or misleading documents to investigators. Pope is to be sentenced on the state charges Aug. 5.