Dennis Smiley Sentenced to 8 Years in Federal Prison

Henry Dennis Smiley Jr., former president of Arvest Bank-Benton County, received a 97-month sentence from a federal judge Thursday for his five-year scheme to defraud multiple Arkansas banks out of millions by pledging his personal Arvest stock as collateral.

Smiley, who will turn 53 in August, was also sentenced by Judge P.K. Holmes III to two years supervised release and ordered to pay $4.91 million restitution.

He must report to prison by noon on Monday, March 14. Smiley pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud and waived indictment on Aug. 25. He had been free on a $10,000 bond.

Smiley, the public face of Arvest-Springdale for 21 years, accepted the job as head of the bank’s Benton County market, its largest with more than $2 billion in assets, in 2012.

He resigned in March 2014 and was investigated for defrauding as many as 23 banks out of $6.3 million by repeatedly pledging his shares in Arvest stock as collateral for a variety of personal and business loans.

According to the plea agreement, the losses his loans caused to the banks is expected to be $5.282 million.

Smiley’s attorney, W.H. Taylor of Fayetteville, attempted to reduce his client’s sentencing due in part to Smiley’s “spotless reputation for honesty and integrity.”

In a pre-sentencing memo filed Jan. 7, Taylor wrote: [Smiley] recognizes that he will bear the badge of a thief for the rest of his life. He re-experiences his humiliation on a daily basis, but remains humble and determined to seek redemption by his actions going forward.

“Smiley has never been in trouble before this and will never be in trouble again. It is important to remember that Smiley’s bank fraud scheme was a very contained criminal event.”

Taylor went on to explain to the court that Smiley was “humbled and humiliated” over his conduct, noting that even though the crimes weren’t violent, they were serious because they involved the banking industry.

“The psychological toll of [Smiley’s] conduct cannot be glossed over,” Taylor wrote. “The shame he feels when looking into the eyes of his mother, hi father, his wife, and his children is simply unimaginable. A short or long term of incarceration will never change this emotional toll upon him. After being condemned with the life-long brand of thief, a five-year sentence would have no greater effect on Smiley than a two-year sentence. Accordingly, long-term incarceration will not serve any purpose in this case.”