A former executive at Greeley-based New Frontier bank pleaded guilty Tuesday to engineering a series of fraudulently obtained loans, including some used in a failed bid to keep the institution from collapsing.

Gregory William Bell, 54, faces up to 50 years behind bars and could be asked to pay as much as $7 million in restitution. Such a long prison term, however, appeared unlikely, given that prosecutors asked the court to consider his cooperation in their investigation when he is sentenced.

Bell is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Lewis Babcock April 30.

The charges against him covered actions he committed in the four years leading up to New Frontier's failure in 2009. In 2010, Bell and several other of the bank's officials, including Larry Seastrom, Robert Brunner, Timothy Thissen, John Kammeier and Jack Renfroe, were banned from banking.

The Federal Insurance Deposit Corp. ordered a criminal investigation into all of the officials, but Bell is the only one to have been charged thus far.

In entering his pleas, Bell conceded that he made false bank entries, was guilty of bank fraud and engaged in money laundering.

According to the plea