Former auctioneer Jim Durham was sentenced in Forrest County Circuit Court on Monday to nine years in prison on four felony counts of writing bad checks.

Durham, former vice president of Durham Auctions, was convicted April 8 on passing bad checks of more than $230,000, including one for $125,000 in 2008 to the Warren County Board of Supervisors for a surplus motor grader. The check bounced, leading Warren County officials to investigate.

Prosecutors said Durham, 36, used an escrow account to hold money that should have gone straight to the seller after an auction, then used the money to pay off loans and investors.

Durham faces three years of probation after the nine consecutive years he will serve in jail, said Forrest County District Attorney Jon Mark Weathers.

The business was owned by Durham and his father, and had done business with Warren County since the 1980s, said Road Manager Richard Winans during the three-day trial. The company and Durham both filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2008, said testimony.

Contact Danny Barrett Jr. at dbarrett@vicksburgpost.com