PIKEVILLE, Ky. — A federal bank fraud case could soon see its first guilty plea.

Prestonsburg real estate developer Paul D. Fannin filed a motion today, asking that he be allowed to withdraw his not guilty plea and instead plead guilty after reaching a deal with prosecutors. The request must be approved by a federal judge.

Fannin, former BB&T loan officer Brent Lee, and Fannin’s daughter, Chelsea Stone, were charged with conspiring to defraud BB&T by obtaining a quarter of a million dollars in loans for Fannin in Stone’s name, after Fannin’s credit with the bank had been cut off.

The move comes one day after prosecutors announced they intended to introduce evidence that Fannin used the money from those loans and previous loans to pay off gambling debts. They also plan to argue Stone was a knowing participant in the scheme, because she allegedly submitted false employment records.