Felice charged with deceptive practices

SPRING VALLEY -- A Tennessee man pleaded not guilty Wednesday afternoon to charges of deceptive practices through his Spring Valley business, Wilson Motor Freight. Philip John Felice Jr., 41, of Bristol, Tenn., has asked for a jury trial, which Circuit Judge Marc Bernabei set for Jan. 31. Felice remains in custody in the Bureau County Jail in lieu of a $25,000 bail. Sgt. Randy Hasbrook and Investigator Dawn Dow with the Bureau County Sheriff's Department led the investigation into the charges against Felice. Dow said the Bureau County Sheriff's Department was alerted about the matter on Oct. 21, after two former employees of Wilson Motor Freight contacted authorities about suspicious activities at the rural Spring Valley business, located at 33289 1500 North Avenue. The suspicious activities showing potential evidence of fraud or business scam, included bounced payroll checks and other bad checks returned to Wilson Motor Freight by area businesses. Wilson Motor Freight, which moved into its rural Spring Valley location the first part of October, had about eight employees. Hasbrook said money was apparently funneled into three separate local checking accounts for Wilson Motor Freight through a closed bank account for Interstate Southwestern Corp. in New Jersey. Bad checks were written under the Wilson Motor Freight name as well as Interstate Southwestern. A second related business, Interstate Motor Freight, was also operating from the same site as Wilson Motor Freight. John Amato, the CEO of the Interstate Northwest Corporation/Interstate Motor Freight, was arrested Nov. 5 in Indiana, based on information given the U.S. Marshall Service by the Bureau County Sheriff's Department. Amato was extradited to New Jersey to face fraudulent activities having to do with business/conspiracy charges in that state. Charges are also pending in Bureau County against the 54-year-old Amato, who has about 12 other aliases, including John Catena, Alfred Yobbi, Joey Catena and John Foor. Felice was arrested Oct. 28 in Tennessee by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. On Nov. 9, a Bureau County grand jury returned an indictment against Felice. He was returned Tuesday to Bureau County. If convicted of the Class 4 felony of fraudulent practices, Felice could be sentenced to a maximum of three years in the Illinois Department of Corrections. He could also be fined $25,000. At Wednesday's hearing, the judge appointed Bureau County Public Defender Michael Henneberry to represent Felice. Bureau County State's Attorney Patrick Herrmann presented the state's case. Dow said Felice has cooperated with authorities. At this point, the sheriff's department is unsure of the amount of Felice's involvement in the fraudulent practices. The sheriff's department will try to do its best to recover as much property as it can, she said. Hasbrook said the investigation into the case continues. "This is a very complex case. We have to sort through a lot of areas," Hasbrook said. "There is not one single time they have done any legitimate business in the Illinois Valley area," he added.