Below is a summary of the activity reported for August 2017. The report stories reflect: 5 guilty pleas or convictions in pending cases; over 51 years of newly imposed sentences for people involved in Ponzi schemes; at least 14 new Ponzi schemes worldwide; and an average age of approximately 53 for the alleged Ponzi schemers. Please feel free to post comments about these or other Ponzi schemes that I may have missed. And please remember that I am just relaying what’s in the news, not writing or verifying it.
Connie Apostelos aka Connie Coleman, 51, was sentenced to 2½ years in prison for her role in the $70 million Ponzi scheme run along with her husband, William Apostelos. The scheme defrauded about 480 victims who lost about $20 million in the scheme. Connie Apostelos operated and oversaw multiple companies, including Coleman Capital Inc. and Silver Bridle Racing LLC. The scheme promised investors returns from stock, real estate, gold and silver, and loans to businesses. William Apostelos previously plead guilty and was sentenced to 180 months in prison. Steven Scudder, 62, previously plead guilty to using his position as an attorney to facilitate the scheme. Scudder was previously sentenced to 14 months in prison.
Dawn J. Bennett, 55, was charged by the SEC with running a $20 million Ponzi scheme through her companies, DJB Holdings and DJBennett Holding LLC. The scheme involved selling notes issued by a luxury sports apparel firm to elderly and unsophisticated investors. Bennett promoted her standing as Barron’s-ranked top woman advisor and had a self-financed weekly radio show called Financial Myth Busting with Dawn Bennett. She also ran Bennett Group Financial Services. Bennett spent the money to support an extravagant lifestyle including purchases of jewelry, clothing, payments on a penthouse condo and a $500,000 annual 20-year lease for a suite at the Dallas Cowboys stadium. Bennett tried to cast spells on SEC investigators, including a “Beef Tongue Shut Up Hoodoo Spell.”
Louis Martin Blazer III agreed to pay $2 million and to be barred from the financial advisory business in connection with his activities run through Blazer Investment Advisors and Blazer Capital Management. Blazer agreed to settle the SEC charges but without admitting to the alleged Ponzi-like scheme. Blazer took money from professional athletes to fund movie projects: one titled Mafia: The Movie and another called Sibling.
Christopher Bohnenkamp, 42, who pleaded guilty to charges relating to a Ponzi scheme in April, was sentenced to 5 years and 3 months for his operation of a Ponzi scheme run through his companies, Treasure Valley Marine and Bohnencamp’s Whitewater Customs. His companies built boats and trailers, but victims lost $3.2 million in the scheme.
Michael S. Burnos, 72, was charged with fraud in connection with the sale or purchase of securities. He promised investors 20% returns from the purchase and sale of collectibles. Burnos had previously been sentenced to more than 7 years in prison for defrauding over 1,300 victims out of more than $14 million, telling investors that he was buying and reselling musical instruments for a profit.
Cardis International, a credit card company, is under investigation for allegedly running a Ponzi scheme that may have involved over $70 million. The scheme involved at least 31 investors who were promised returns of 12 to 18%. Cardis allegedly faked ties to Jay-Z’s company Roc Nation to lure investors.
Darren Dash was accused of running a Ponzi scheme that allegedly defrauded about two dozen athletes. Dash once headed Pro Player Funding, which is a subsidiary of Platinum Partners, also accused of running a $1 billion Ponzi scheme.
Timothy Durham, 55, the former CEO of National Lampoon Inc. was ordered to pay a $1.3 million penalty in connection with the SEC’s action against him, but the SEC’s request for $230 million in disgorgement was denied. Durham ran a Ponzi scheme through Fair Finance, defrauding about 5,000 investors. Durham was previously sentenced to 50 years in prison in connection with the scheme.
Robert H. Edmunds III, 75, pleaded guilty to charges relating to his solicitation of at least $1 million to invest in various Ponzi schemes such as Web Booth Inc., Branson City Limits, Inc., Douglas Network Enterprises, and Sunshine Real Estate Development Inc. Edmunds was under investigation in 2004 but remained at large, living in Belize for almost 12 years.
Tzvi Erez, 49, was sentenced to 8 years in prison in connection with a Ponzi scheme that defrauded 12 investors out of 6.2 million. Erez offered investors 30% interest per year from printing contracts that actually never existed. He showed investors bogus printing contracts to lure them into the scheme.
Daniel J. Flynn III, 53, had his plea agreement approved, which provides for Flynn to pay back more than $20 million to the 73 victims of his scheme. Flynn pleaded guilty to certain counts relating to his real estate investment scheme that prosecutors called “similar to a Ponzi scheme.”
Brianne Ghallagher, 32, is wanted in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme that she ran while employed with Bromm’ Sod Farm. Ghallager, who ran the sod division, collected cash payments from customers but never turned the money over to her employer. Instead, she unlawfully used customers’ credit cards to pay on accounts of customers who previously paid in cash.
Rick Koerber, 44, started his trial for allegedly running one of the largest Ponzi schemes in Utah. He allegedly took in $100 million in a real estate scheme run through Founder’s Capital and FranklinSquires Cos. Investments. The funds were to be used for “equity milling” in real estate transactions – buying homes and renting or reselling them. Koerber has pleaded not guilty and has accused regulators and prosecutors of misconduct.
Thomas Lanzana and his company Blackbox Pulse (Unique Forex), and Nikolay Masanko and his company White Cloud Mountain, LLC were sued by the CFTC on allegations that they were running a $700,000 Ponzi scheme. They solicited investors to participate in forex trading pools and other investments. The scheme defrauded at least 31 investors.
Wayde McKelvy, 54, sought to dismiss a 10 count indictment on charges relating to his role in the $54.5 million Ponzi scheme through green energy company, Mantria Inc. Mantria was run by Troy Wragg and Amanda Knorr and promised investors returns of up to 484%. McKelvy pitched the scheme through get-rich-quick seminars promising to make investors “filthy, stinking rich.”
Raymond K. Montoya, 69, was charged with running a Ponzi scheme through RMA Strategic Opportunity Fund LLC. Montoya promised investors returns from investments in stocks and bonds, but only a portion of the money was actually invested. The rest was diverted for his personal expenses such as luxury vehicles and the mortgage on his son’s residence. Montoya told investors he had $5 billion in assets in his fund when the highest amount he ever had was about $20 million.
Jason Nissen, 44, pleaded not guilty to charges that he ran a Ponzi scheme through National Event Co., although it is believed that he is trying to work out a plea deal. The scheme involved $70 million invested in connection with a buy and resell ticket business. Nissen was also denied leave to travel to Las Vegas in advance of the Mayweather-McGregor fight.
Ariel Quiros, 59, consented to a preliminary injunction sought by the SEC who alleged that Quiros ran a “Ponzi-like” scheme to supposedly fund upgrades at the Vermont Jay Peak ski resort. A separate investigation is pending against Quiros and his partner, Bill Stenger, by the U.S. Attorney’s office, but no criminal charges have yet been filed.
Benjamin Rose, 35, was arrested on charges that he ran a Ponzi scheme that allegedly defrauded victims out of over $450,000. The scheme involved returns supposedly generated from the remodel and resale of properties that he purchased using investor funds.
Randall Rye, 26, was sentenced to 5 years and 10 months in prison in connection with a $1.7 million Ponzi scheme run through Faster Than Light Trading. Rye claimed to have a “propriety algorithmic trading program” for options and futures trading.
Martin Shkreli, 34, was found guilty on two counts of securities fraud and acquitted on 5 other charges relating to what prosecutors called a Ponzi scheme. Shkreli used investor funds to form a new drug company, Retrophin. Shkreli called the case against him “a witch hunt” and stated in a streaming video after the conviction, “I don’t think I’m going to prison, by the way.”
Douglas Swenson, 69, and his sons, Jeremy Swenson, 44, and David Swenson, 40, and Mark Ellison, 69, saw their criminal convictions upheld on appeal. The three were convicted in connection with a Ponzi scheme run through Diversified Business Services and Investment. Douglas Swenson was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Ellison was sentenced to 5 years and the younger Swensons were sentenced to three years each.
Richard Paul Underwood, 65, and Colin P. Purcell, 56, were arrested in connection with their roles in an alleged $15 million oil Ponzi scheme. The arrests came after the indictment was unsealed, which followed guilty pleas from David R. Greenlee, 41, and David A. Stewart, 46, who admitted their involvement in the investment scheme. The scheme involved the companies, Southern Energy Group Inc., Black Gold Resources, and TennStar Energy Inc. At least 150 investors were promised returns of 15% to 50% per year from supposed drilling opportunities. Underwood was also charged with securities fraud for allegedly running a boiler room of telemarketers in Florida to sell the fake oil investments.
Kevin D. Wanner reached a settlement with the North Dakota Securities Department in connection with the Ponzi scheme run through Questar Capital Corporation. Wanner was a securities agent doing business through Precision Financial and allegedly sold fictitious certificates of deposit and unregistered interests in pooled investments to 66 victims.
Paul David Ward, 61, was charged with running a Ponzi-style” scheme that took in $700,000. Ward operated an aviation fuel supply business through Lebanon Aviation Service Inc. and wrote promissory notes and post-dated checks as part of the scheme.
Chris Young Yoo, 44, was sentenced to 9 years in prison and ordered to pay nearly $3.7 million in restitution in connection with a Ponzi scheme that he ran through Summit Asset Strategies. The scheme defrauded 17 investors.
Joseph Paul Zada, 59, lost his appear to the Eleventh Circuit seeking to overturn his conviction and 210 month prison sentence. Zada was convicted in connection with a scheme that defrauded more than 20 investors. He represented that he had connections to Saudi Arabian oil ventures but instead used the funds for his personal expenses. On appeal, Zada said that he borrowed money from people in good faith and anticipated paying them from an expected inheritance of $250 million.
INTERNATIONAL PONZI SCHEME NEWS
Argentina
The Ponzi scheme, PayDiamond, is alleged to have claimed 30,000 victims and involve $60 million. The scheme, which started in Brazil, is targeting Bolivian immigrants in Argentina.
Australia
Michael Christopher Samra, 57, pleaded guilty to charges that he ran a $2 million Ponzi scheme. He was sentenced to 8 years and nine months in prison.
Cayman Islands
CWM FX is under investigation for running an alleged Ponzi scheme.
Finland
OncCoin is under investigation as part of a global crackdown against the scheme. The scheme is under investigation in India, Italy, and the United Kingdom.
India
Pradeep Sethy, the Group Chief of Artha Tatwa, along with directors Manoj Patnaik and Sri Krushna Padhi, were sentenced to 7 years in prison in connection with a Ponzi scheme run through the Artha Tatwa Group.
Devi Prasad Moharana, the head of Bandhan Financial Services, was arrested on charges that hundreds of investors were defrauded in a Ponzi scheme. Moharana has pleaded innocence.
Michael Ferreira, 77, had his bail plea rejected, along with Malcom Desai, in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme run through Vihaan Direct Selling (India), a subsidiary of the Hong-Kong based direct selling company, ONet.
Sudhir Patil has been held in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme run through Jeeo India. Seventeen people have been arrested in connection with the scheme that promised investors 1% profit per day. Customers were asked to become members and buy the company’s e-currency.
The government was authorized to sell at auction properties of Land India Real Estate Private Ltd. and Land India Assets Ltd. The proceeds are to be paid to investors defrauded in scheme run by the companies.
Malaysia
Arunmaguam has been accused of running a Ponzi scheme through Uni Pay Group.
Datuk Seri and Pahang and Kota Baru were arrested on charges that they ran a Ponzi scheme through MGCfx. The scheme promised investors returns of 10% per week through foreign exchange trading.
Philippines
Barbara May Garcia, Herley Jesuitas, Anthony Kierulf, Jose Tengco III, Oudine Santos, Nicoline Mendoza and Maria Pamela Morris were ordered to be put on trial in connection with their role as agents or brokers for Philippine International Planning Center Corp.
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