August 2024 Ponzi Scheme Roundup

By Kathy Bazoian Phelps

Below is a summary of Ponzi scheme activity reported for August 2024. There were at least 9 new Ponzi schemes revealed this month. Ponzi schemers received more than 111 years of prison sentences. The average age of the fraudsters was about 51 years old. Please feel free to post comments about these or other Ponzi schemes that I may have missed. 

Jonathan Adam, 42, of Texas, and his brother, Tanner Adam, 38, of Florida, and their firms GCZ Global LLC and Triten Financial Group LLC, were charged by the SEC in connection with an alleged cryptocurrency scheme. Investors were promised returns from loans to a crypto asset trading platform that used a “bot” to supposedly identify arbitrage trading opportunities. The scheme brought in $60 million from more than 80 investors and promised returns of 13.5%.

Bernardo Mendia-Alcaraz, 52, and his private equity firm, Toltec Capital LLC, were charged by the SEC in connection with an alleged $3.3 million Ponzi-like scheme. They promised returns from low-risk private funds.

Carl Arnal aka Michael J. Cohen, 65, Christopher Vaughan, Thompson Hunt and Associates, Ltd. (THA), Brookdale Consultants LLC, Growth Point Consultants, Inc., Damon Artis, and Richard Gavzie were charged by the SEC for their roles in two alleged fraudulent schemes. The scheme raised $1.3 million by misrepresenting the Thompson Hunt investment as a government bond. Arnal and Vaughan misappropriated more than $1 million of the $1.3 million raised. Artis and Gavzie were also accused of soliciting $7 million in selling microcap securities. 

Janalie C. Bingham, of Florida, her convicted felon husband, Jean Joseph, and their company Wells Real Estate Investment, LLC, were charged by the SEC on allegations that they were running a Ponzi scheme that raised at least $56 million from approximately 660 investors. They represented that they had a $450 million real estate portfolio, but in reality, only $11 million was used to purchase real property. The scheme promised returns of 12% annually and 99% at the end of three years. 

Russell Todd Burkhalter, 52, of Georgia, and his company Drive Planning LLC, were charged by the SEC in connection with an alleged $300 million real estate Ponzi scheme. The scheme brought in money from more than 2,000 investors, promising returns of 10% every three months from land development projects. Burkhalter allegedly used investors funds to buy a $3.1 million yacht, $2 million for a luxury condo, and spent $4.6 million on chartering private jets. Burkhalter’s wife, Jacqueline Burkhalter, and The Burkhalter Ranch Corporation, Drive Properties, Drive Gulfport Properties, and TBR Supply House were also named as relief defendants.

Robert Christensen, 54, and Anthony Matic, 55, of Oregon, were indicted on charges relating to an alleged Ponzi scheme in which investors were promised returns from the supposed renovation and sale of undervalued residential properties. They promised returns of 8% to 15% within 30 to 90 days. The scheme defrauded investors out of about $11 million, and commercial lenders out of around $7 million. Christensen and Matic pleaded not guilty. In 2023, the SEC had accused them of running a Ponzi-like scheme through their businesses Foresee Inc., The Commission PDX LLC, The Policy PDX LLC, and Innings 150 LLC.

Kalin Thanh Dao, 32, of Minnesota was charged in connection with a fraudulent investment ring that defrauded more than 200 investors out of more than $10 million. Her father, Nghia Trong Dao, and mother, Thu Nguyet Le Dao, also face charges relating to the scheme. The scheme was run through TD Financial Services, NLC TD Financial Services, NLC Financial Services and NLC Venture Group, and promised returns of 20% to 2,000% over the course of one to 18 months from supposed ventures in stocks, gold, diamonds, and oil commodities.

David Gentile, 57, was found guilty of running a Ponzi-like fraud through GPB Capital Holdings LLC. GPB is an investment advisory firm that misrepresented the performance of the funds and the source of monthly distributions to investors. More than $1.8 billion was raised from thousands of investors. Jeffrey Schneider, 55, the owner and CEO of marketing company Ascendant Capital LLC, was also convicted. Jeffrey Lash, a former managing partner at GPB, pleaded guilty last year.

Tom Girardi, 85, was convicted on charges relating to a 10-year Ponzi scheme run through his law firm, Girardi Keese. Girardi blamed his former chief accountant, Chris Kamon, 50, for at least $15 million Girardi siphoned from client settlement funds. Kamon allegedly misappropriated about $50 million from Girardi Keese accounts.

Jesse W. Harris, 36, of Kansas, was sentenced to 2½ years in prison in connection with a scheme run through Harris Custom Projects LLC.

Cynthia and Eddy Petion and their company Nova Tech Ltd. were charged by the SEC with running a cryptocurrency scheme that took in more than $650 million from over 200,000 investors around the world. Nova Tech is a crypto investment platform. The SEC also charged six NovaTech promoters—Martin Zizi, Dapilinu Dunbar, James Corbett, Corrie Sampson, John Garofano, and Marsha Hadley. They are accused of recruiting investors. 

Ross O. Schlomann, 45, of Wisconsin, was sentenced to 5 years in prison and ordered to pay $2.1 million in restitution in connection with a scheme involving home construction. Schlomann was a contractor with Refurbs Properties, LLC and defrauded more than a dozen victims whose homes he had promised to build. He used customer funds for other purposes, including shortages on previous projects.

Avinash Singh, 42, of Florida, was sentenced to 24 years in prison in connection with a $57 million investment fraud Ponzi scheme run through Highrise Advantage LLC. More than 1,100 victims were defrauded in the scheme. Singh claimed he was a successful foreign exchange trader, and investors were promised returns from investment in retail foreign currency contracts.

Paul Horton Smith Sr., 61, of California, was sentenced to 15 years and 8 months in prison and order to pay approximately $13.3 million in restitution in connection with a Ponzi scheme run through Northstar Communications LLC, Planning Services Inc., and eGate LLC that lasted nearly 20 years. The scheme defrauded at least 200 investors and brought in more than $24 million. Smith promised returns from purported investments in real estate and the stock market and that investments would generate a fixed rate of return.

James Stevens, 47, was sentenced to 4 years in prison in connection with a loan Ponzi scheme that was run through Primis Bank. Stevens is a former commercial lender who pled guilty to bank fraud by issuing fraudulent loans. Primis lost over $2.4 million. 

Josh S. Verne, 47, of Florida, was charged by the SEC for falsifying documents as part of a Ponzi scheme to induce investors to invest. Verne separately pleaded not guilty to related criminal charges.

INTERNATIONAL PONZI SCHEME NEWS 

Canada

Ronald James Aitkens was sentenced to 4 years in prison in connection with a $112 million Ponzi scheme run through Royal Bengal Logistics. Aitkens raised more than $35 million from about 1,500 investors between 2005 and 2007.

Brian Robert Gunsten, 52, was charged in connection with an alleged wine Ponzi scheme in which victims loaned money to purchase wine that would later be resold. There were more than $1.3 million in losses.

Ward Derek Jensen, 55, was sentenced to three years in prison in connection with a scheme run through Kassel Enterprises. Jensen had promised investors returns of 14% to 18% per year from investment in a private fund.

India

Sandeep Chowdhury, 41, was arrested on charges that he was running a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme. Chowdhury is the CEO of Yes World. 

Authorities attached assets in connection with its investigation of Pearlvine International, which is alleged to have run a Ponzi scheme from 2018 to 2023. 

Jiyajur Raheman Syed was arrested on allegations that he was running a Ponzi scheme through LFS Broking Company. The scheme allegedly defrauded 55 people. The company claimed to invest 80% of the funds in blue-chip companies.

Philippines

Joel Apolinario was found guilty in connection with the Ponzi scheme run through Kapa Community Ministry International, Inc. Apolinario and Christopher D. Abad were sentenced to one year and one day.

Poland

Marcin and Katarzyna P. were sentenced to 15 years and 12 years six months, respectively in connection with a Ponzi scheme that defrauded 18,000 investors out of $225 million.  The scheme was fun through Amber Gold. 

Singapore

Yang Bin, 61, was sentenced to 6 years in prison in connection with a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme run through A&A Blockchain Innovation that defrauded more than 700 investors. Bin promised investors .5% returns daily from purportedly owning 300,000 machines that could mine cryptocurrency through its Chain Mining Scheme. Lu Huangbin, Chen Wei, and Wang Xinghong are co-conspirators. Wang was jailed for 5 years. A total of about $6.7 million was invested. 

South Korea

Byun Young-oh, the CEO of Wakon that operates the platform MainEthernet, was arrested on charges of running a scheme that generated $366 million of funds from over 500 investors. Investors were promised returns of between 45% and 50%. Byun denied that he was involved in a Ponzi scheme. Yeom Mo-si was also arrested in connection with the alleged scheme. Wakon’s parent company, SAK-3, is also under investigation.

Taiwan

Authorities sentenced 31 individuals in connection with a Ponzi scheme run though a peer to peer lending platform known as im.B, which is short for “I am Bank.” Tseng Yao-feng was sentenced to 16.5 years in prison, and his girlfriend Chang Shu-fen was sentenced to 12 years and two months. The other 29 defendants in the case received sentences ranging from 1–8 years.

Turkey

Andreas Szakacs aka Emre Avci was arrested in connection with a cryptocurrency and foreign exchange scheme run through OmegaPro aka Go Global. OmegaPro promised returns of up to 300% through a top-secret trading algorithm. The scheme allegedly defrauded millions of investors and brought in approximately $4 billion before it collapsed in 2022. Szakacs and co-founders Dilawar Singh and Mike Sims went into hiding after the collapse. Juan Carlos Reynoso was arrested in Mexico in 2023.

July 2024 Ponzi Scheme Roundup

By Kathy Bazoian Phelps

Below is a summary of Ponzi scheme activity reported for July 2024. There were at least 13 new Ponzi schemes revealed this month. Ponzi schemers received more than 22 years of prison sentences plus one life sentence. There were 4 guilty pleas. The average age of the fraudsters was about 54 years old. Please feel free to post comments about these or other Ponzi schemes that I may have missed. 

Roosevelt Tobias Bailey, 68, of Georgia, and his company Borg Investment Bank & Capital Trust, were charged by the SEC in connection with a fraudulent prime bank and gold and diamond investment scheme, along with Alvin C. Jones, Esq., of Florida, for aiding and abetting the scheme. They raised more than $1.6 million from at least 26 investors, and Jones, an attorney, allowed the investor money to flow through his trust account.

Michelle Bisnoff aka Michelle Angeline Silverstein aka Shelly Silverstein, 57, of Florida, was arrested on charges that she defrauded investors out of $2 million. Bisnoff owns ESOS Rings, Inc. and represented that ESOS owned patents for “smart rings,” a wearable device that could be used to make contactless payments. ESOS did not actually own the patents.

Ricardi Celicourt, 40, and Brisly Guillaue, 39, of Florida, were sued by the SEC on allegations that they were running a Ponzi scheme through Royal Bengal Logistics, a trucking and logistics business. The scheme allegedly defrauded Haitian-American victims. The SEC alleges that they helped raise nearly $109 million from 1,500 investors. The scheme was led by Sanja Singh, 43.

James M. DelVerne, 54, Doug Miller, 60, Gary Rathbun, 67, and Nancy Rathbun, 72, and John T. Walters, 53, were indicted on charges relating to the Eliyahu Weinstein Ponzi scheme. The scheme allegedly defrauded at least 200 people out of $72 million.

Yossi Engel had a final judgment entered against him in an action by the SEC. Engel ran a $47 million Ponzi scheme through iWitness Tech, LLC that targeting members of the orthodox Jewish community. Engel first represented that he would purchase and install security equipment, and later represented that he would purchase property in Israel, develop it and then resell it.

Vitaly Fargesen, 54, and Igor Palatnik, 49, were sentenced to 4 years and 6½ years in prison, respectively, for their role in the fraudulent scheme run through CanaFarma Corp., later known as CanaFarma Hemp Products Corp. They represented that CanaFarma was a “fully integrated cannabis company addressing the entire cannabis spectrum from seed to delivery of consumer products.” The scheme lured in $14 million of investor funds.

Debra Mae Carter, 65, of Texas, the mistress of William “Doc” Gallagher, 83, was sentenced to three life sentences in connection with a scheme that exploited the elderly. Gallagher hosted a radio show and called himself “the Money doctor.” The scheme took in more than $31 million over 10 years and defrauded more than 170 mostly retired investors. Carter laundered the money through rental homes and fake charities, among other things.

Johanna Michely Garcia, 41, of Florida, pleaded guilty to charges in connection with a $190 million Ponzi scheme run through MJ Capital Funding. Garcia called herself “Mother Teresa” in Florida and represented that she was loaning small businesses money they needed to operate. Garcia’s co-defendants, Christian Gonzalez and Pavel Ruiz Hernandez, were previously sentenced in connection with the scheme. Even after MJ Capital was shut down by the FBI in 2021, the three began running the fraud through New Beginning Global Funding, New Beginning Capital Funding, Lion Heart Capital Group, GMR Remodeling, and Group Management.

Sam Ikkurty, of Oregon, and his firms, Jafia LLC, Ikkurty Capital LLC, Rose City Income Fund, Rose City Income Fund II, and Seneca Ventures, were ordered to pay restitution of almost $84 million and disgorgement of almost $37 million in connection with a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme. The scheme promised investors returns from 15% to 2,708% returns from a $100 investment in stake mining and digital tollbooths. The CFTC had charged Ikkurty and Ravishankar Avadhanam in 2022 for conducting a deceptive scheme that solicited about $44 million from at least 170 investors. A court in Illinois determined that two altcoins in the scheme, OHM and KIMA, were commodities.

Adrian J. Kawuba, of Massachusetts, had a final judgment entered against him in a case filed by the SEC in connection with a $2 million securities Ponzi scheme. Kawuba had promised investors return of 25% to 59% in as little as 12 days to 7 months and that he was using the funds to finance short-term projects related to youth sports, entertainment events, and private soccer clubs. Kawuba had been sentenced to 27 months in prison in April in connection with the scheme.

Bradley J. Konorman and Adam R. Salon, of Ohio, were charged in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme that defrauded at least 200 victims out of more than $72 million.

Francius Marganda, 41, an Indonesian national, pleaded guilty to charges in connection with a $23 million Ponzi scheme that defrauded more than 400 victims. He targeted the Indo-American victims through two sham loan programs called Easy Transfer and Global Transfer. He falsely represented that they were short-term, high-interest loan programs.

John N. Matson, 67, of California, and his company, South Bay Acquisitions, LLC, were charged by the SEC on allegations that they were running a scheme that raised approximately $1,535,000. Matson promised investors returns of 12% to 20% from LLC Bonds that were functionally like promissory notes.

Briton James Moore, who was convicted in connection with the Bar Works Ponzi scheme in 2022, died in prison three years into an 11-year sentence. The scheme defrauded more than 800 people out of $58 million. The scheme had offered returns from hot-desking space in refurbished bars and restaurants around the world. The ringleader, Renwick Haddow, 55, is yet to be sentenced. Moore’s co-conspirator Savraj ‘Sam’ Gata-Aura was sentenced to 4 years in prison in 2020. UK citizens James Robinson and David Kennedy pleaded guilty earlier this year.

Timothy Andrew Nemeckay, 64, of Utah, was sentenced to one day in prison and 24 months of supervised release and ordered to pay approximately $1.7 million in restitution following his admission that he misappropriated approximately $1.7 million from investors. Nemeckay had promised returns from investments in Mine Shaft Brewing. The scheme defrauded 100 investors.

Robert Newell, 63, of California and his company, Black Hawk Funding, were sued by the SEC on allegations that they raised $37.7 million from about 200 investors. Newell originally focused on the real estate industry but pivoted to cannabis when it was legalized in California. Newell was financial advisor to three funds, Verde Ventures Inc., Verde Holdings Inc., and Verde Partner Inc. Newell also used National Asset Valuation Services to misappropriate funds. They promised 10% annual returns. 

Mark Nordlicht was sentenced to 6 months of home confinement after he was found guilty of fraud in connection with the Platinum Partners Ponzi scheme. Nordlicht and David Levy were convicted on charges that they diverted proceeds from the sale of assets held by Black Elk Energy Offshore Operations LLC, a company in Platinum’s portfolio, and defrauded bondholders by funneling $70 million to Platinum. David Small, a Platinum manager, was convicted in 2022.

Nestor Nunez aka Salvador Molina, 66, and Antonio Perez Hernandez, 49, pleaded guilty to charges relating to the Forcount Trader Systems Inc. cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme. The scheme was based in Brazil and defrauded Spanish-speaking investors out of $8.4 million. Nunez, an actor, pretended to be the fictitious Forcount CEO “Salvador Molina.” Francisley Da Silva, 39, was the ringleader of the scheme and was arrested in 2022. Juan Tacuri, 46, pleaded guilty in June.

Michael Rabb, an attorney, pleaded not guilty to charges that he operated a Ponzi scheme through Isotex Health, LLC. Rabb was charged along with Byron Gruber, Jason Bradley Cross and Eugene Elfrank.

Babu Ramaraj, 46, of Virginia, was charged by the SEC in connection with an alleged $31 million Ponzi scheme that defrauded over 70 investors. Ramaraj claimed that his company, DAB Inspection and Consulting Services, LLC, was doing civil engineering inspection work on federal and state projects. The SEC alleged that the contracts never existed, and Ramaraj created phony contracts and subcontractor invoices to defraud investors. Criminal charges were also filed in June.

Brian Simms, 46, of Indianna, was sentenced to 7½ years in prison and ordered to pay $2.6 million in restitution following his guilty plea for running a Ponzi scheme through Brendanwood Brokerage. Simms defrauded at least 22 victims by convincing them to liquidate traditional 401(k) accounts and life insurance policies and to deposit those funds with Brendanwood. Simms took in almost $4 million from his victims.

Paul Horton Smith Sr., of California was barred by the SEC for his role in that $24 million Ponzi run through Northstar Communications LLC, Planning Services Inc. and eGate LLC. Smith had previously pleaded guilty to defrauding at least 35 investors out of $5.6 million.

Tilila Siola Walker Sumchai, 61, was charged in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme that defrauded more than 1,000 people out of $13 million. Sumchai solicited Tongan investors and claimed to use a secret algorithm in her “Tongi Tupe” investment program that promised large returns within weeks or months.

Abner Alejandro Tinoco and his company Kikit & Mess Investments, LLC were ordered to pay over $31 million in penalties in connection with a foreign currency and cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme. The scheme defrauded 199 victims who invested over $7.2 million into the scheme. Tinoco previously pleaded guilty to the scheme and was sentenced to 7 years in prison.

INTERNATIONAL PONZI SCHEME NEWS 

Australia

John Bigatton was sentenced after pleading guilty to providing unlicensed financial advice in connection with the BitConnect Ponzi scheme and BCC token. BitConnect had presented itself as a crypto lending platform and defrauded investors out of $2.4 billion. Bigatton was released without prison time on the condition he pay a security of $100 and comply with a good behavior period of three years.

Canada

Curtis Quigley, drowned in a river while awaiting trial on charges that he and Kathleen Treadgold had run a $7.8 million Ponzi scheme for 12 years. They had allegedly run a real estate fix and flip scheme, and the trial was set to begin in 2025. Quigley was 56 at the time of his death.

England

Elliot Gunton pleaded guilty to running a crypto Ponzi scheme using a Coinbase dummy website. He was sentenced to 3 ½ years in prison. Gunton is a computer hacker who stole more than $900,000 from more than 500 Coinbase accounts.

India

Raeesa Khan Poonawala, 46, and her husband Mustafa Baig were charged on allegations that they were running a Ponzi scheme that promised 150% in 90 to 100 days. The scheme is believed to have defrauded 444 people.

K D Prathapan was arrested in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme run through Highrich Online Shoppe. After Prathapan’s accounts were frozen, he allegedly relaunched his scheme under the name HR Innovation.

Authorities filed a complaint against Radhe Shyam and Bansi Lal for allegedly running a Ponzi scheme through Future Maker Lifecare Private Limited, Hisar, and M/s FMLC Global Marketing Private Limited. The scheme promised returns of up to 5 to 8 times the principal investment amount in two years.

Ashish Shah, 44, was arrested on allegations that he was running a Ponzi scheme promising investors 84% returns from the stock market.

Philippines

Bernadeth Albaracin and John Mark Pineda were arrested on allegations that they were running a Ponzi scheme through Skyline Trading aka Hybrid Trading aka Neon Marketing. The scheme allegedly promised returns of 35% to 50%.

The SEC warned against investing in Safe District Enterprise as it is not authorized to solicit investments from the public. Safe District is owned by Rexon G. Cortez and Lovely Charisma S. Cortez. Investors were promised 5% to 12% profits monthly.

Spain

Stijn Vanstraelen, 45, was arrested on allegations that he ran a multimillion-euro cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme. The scheme took in at least 24 million euros, and investors were promised returns from investments in cryptocurrencies, which included connections to Nanocoin, Nanoclub and CryptoTrain. Victims were unable to access their funds due to blocked cryptocurrency wallets.

Thailand

Pimprapassorn Jaemjaras, 44, was arrested on allegations that she was one of the operators of a Ponzi scheme known as OD Capital. The scheme promised returns of 10%.

June 2024 Ponzi Scheme Roundup

By Kathy Bazoian Phelps

Below is a summary of Ponzi scheme activity reported for June 2024. There were at least 6 new Ponzi schemes revealed this month. Ponzi schemers received more than 23 years of prison sentences and there were 4 guilty pleas. The average age of the fraudsters was about 45 years old. Please feel free to post comments about these or other Ponzi schemes that I may have missed. 

Vincent Falci, 57, was charged on allegations that he was running a Ponzi scheme that stole $5.3 million from investors. Falci is a New Jersey investment manager who represented that he was investing in day-trading and real estate.

Joshua Goltry, 30, pleaded guilty to running a Ponzi scheme through JAG Cap LLC dba JAG Capital, an investment fund. Goltry had represented that he managed more than $50 million but obtained about $3 million over the course of the scheme. He claimed that the fund’s performance exceeded 200% and at times exceeded 1000%.

Alan John Hanke, 50, pleaded guilty to charges that he misappropriated more than $8 million as part of a Ponzi scheme run through IOLO Capital. Hanke promised investors high returns in a short period of time from investments in standby letters of credit, medium term notes, and high yield bonds. He also promised that the investments were insured against losses. Hanke filed bankruptcy in 2021, seeking to discharge the debts but failed to disclose the proceeds from the sale of an airplane.

William Logsdon, 55, was sentenced to 9 years in prison in connection with a $2.1 million scheme that he ran with his mother-in-law, Jamie Thompson. Thompson pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 5 years in prison.

Ruja Ignatova had a $5 million bounty placed on her head by the U.S. State Department. Ignatova went missing in 2017 and is believed to be the ringleader of the OneCoin Ponzi scheme. She was added to the FBI’s Most Wanted list in 2022. Ignatova faces charges in the U.S., Germany and India. Co-founder Karl Greenwood was sentenced to 20 years in prison, and Bulgarian national Irina Dilkinska and American Mark Scott were sentenced to prison earlier this year - 4 years and 10 years, respectively. 

Siddarth Jawahar, 36, of Missouri, and his investment company, Swiftarc Capital, and other related companies, were charged in connection with running a Ponzi scheme that brought in $35 million. Only $10 million was actually invested, and Jawahar used funds to pay for private planes, stays at luxurious hotels, and extravagant dinners.

Frank Mercado, 26, of North Carolina, was charged and pleaded guilty to defrauding more than 100 people through a Ponzi scheme run through his business, Tiger-Wolf Capital. The scheme run from 2019 to 2022 and victims lost more than $700,000. Investors were promised more than a 50% return on their investment from supposed options trading.

Michael Mooney, Britt Wright and Penny Flippen were barred by the SEC and fined about $230,000 in penalties each based on their role in the Horizon Private Equity III Ponzi scheme run by John J. Woods. The scheme raised $100 million, and Woods was sentenced to almost 8 years in prison. Investors were promised 6% to 7% returns from portfolios in government bonds, stocks, and real estate products.

Della Far Perez pleaded not guilty to charges that she stole $400,000 in restitution from Ponzi scheme victims.

Eddy Petion and Cynthia Petion were charged in connection with a scheme run through NovaTechFX and AWS Mining Pty Ltd based on allegations that they were running a $1 billion fraud through a cryptocurrency trading and mining business. Over 11,000 investors deposited over $1 billion of crypto, but less than $26 million was actually traded. The scheme targeted the Haitian community. Others named in the suit include top promoters and recruiters James Corbett, Martin Zizi and Frantz Ciceron; and several companies linked to the group — NovaTech Advisors, NovaPay, Kings Multi Services Agency, Trinity of Success and Positive Vision Marketing.

Sergei Potapenko, 39, and Ivan Turõgin, 39, were accused of running a Ponzi scheme through HashFlare, a cloud mining contract service. The scheme allegedly defrauded investors out of approximately $575 million by selling mining capacity that they did not actually have. HashFlare used Ecohouse and Dalmeron, which were shell companies, to launder and transfer investor funds

Brian Simms, 46, of Indiana, was sentenced to more than 7 years in prison and ordered to pay $2.6 million in restitution for running a Ponzi-like scheme through Brendanwood Financial Brokerage LLC. Simms misappropriated more than $3.9 million from 20 investors and used some of the funds for personal expenditures. Simms was not licensed to sell securities.

Ricky Southers and Southers Construction of Epping have been sued to prohibit the construction firm from accepting payments in what is alleged to be a Ponzi scheme that defrauded victims out of more than $500,000.

Michael Rabb, Byron Gruber, Jason Bradley Cross, and Eugene Elfrank were accused of running a Ponzi scheme through Texas-based Isotex Health, LLC. The scheme allegedly involved over $6 million through a hemp processing facility in Montana. 

Juan Tacuri, 46, of Florida, pleaded guilty to his role in promoting the cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme through Forcount, later than as Weltsys. Forcount promised returns to victims from cryptocurrency trading and mining, but in reality, there was no trading and mining. The scheme brought in $8.4 million, mostly from Spanish-speaking investors. Forcount also began selling proprietary crypto coins known as Mindexcoin.

Nicole J. Walker, 44, was sued by the SEC in connection with a $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme run through Woodbridge Wealth. Woodbridge raised funds from more than 8,400 investors nationwide. The CEO, Robert H. Shapiro, was sentenced to 25 years in prison in connection with the Woodbridge scheme.

INTERNATIONAL PONZI SCHEME NEWS 

Australia

Marley Wynter was ordered to pay $4.8 million to plaintiffs in a suit relating to a poker sports betting scheme run through Marley’s House of Sport. The affiliated company Marley’s House of Investment is believed to be a Ponzi scheme that marketed itself as a financial investment service specializing in sports betting, horse racing, and “strategic” bankroll management, claiming to have more than 12,000 investors.

Dean Pipcelli, 56, was sentenced to 2½ years in prison for a scheme he ran involving the purchase and sale of timber supplies.

Canada

Usman Asif and his companies, Mughal Asset Management Corp. and Lendle Corp., were permanently banned from the Ontario Capital Markets Tribunal. They were previously found to have operated a scheme that targeted the Pakistani community, promising monthly returns of 2% to 5%. The scheme involved at least $2.76 million.

India

Authorities arrested Sandeep Kumar Yadav who is accused of defrauding about 5,000 investors in a motorcycle taxi scheme known as Maple Innovative Promoters, similar to the Bike Bot scheme.

Authorities raided the premises of the promoters of HighRich Online Group who are accused of running a Rs 1,500 crore Ponzi scheme. The scheme involved trading of cryptocurrency and a crypto coin named HR Crypto Coin, and investors were promised 15% returns per year and 30% referral fees for bringing in new customers. Authorities also searched the premises of also conducted searches at the premises of Highrich Smartech Pvt. Ltd., Highrich Online Shoppe Pvt. Ltd., and related entities.

Elite Forum World was a multi-level investment program which been labeled as a disguised Ponzi scheme. The scheme promoted a “Gift Plan” in which they initial investment was labeled a gift and the distributed to earlier investors.

Authorities seized approximately 37 crore in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme run by Amber Dalal and his company, Ritz Consultancy Services. The scheme raised more than 600 crore from 1,300 investors. Dalal promised returns of 18% to 22% from the supposed investment in funds in commodities.

Kunjathbail Mujib Sayyad was arrested on allegations that he was running a Ponzi scheme through Max Crypto Trading. The scheme was operated through an Android application called MAX App.

Nigeria

Mariam Suleiman, the chairwoman of Famzhi Interbiz Limited, was jailed for 5 years and the company was ordered to wind up its affairs and all property forfeited to the government.

Authorities sealed the premises of Ready Finance Investors Limited for engaging in an alleged Ponzi scheme.

Philippines

Authorities warned the public that Skyline Crypto and Dry Goods Trading are not authorized to solicit investments.

The SEC revoked the registration of New Seataoo Corp. and Seataoo Information Technology OPC and imposed a P1-million fine.

Thailand

Authorities arrested a Chinese woman identified as Hu, 24, on charges that she ran a Ponzi scheme that caused over 150 million baht in damages.

Turkey

Authorities detained 127 co-conspirators and seized over $31 million in assets in connection with an alleged cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme.

Singapore

Alvin Koo Jing You, 38, was arrested on allegations that he was running a Ponzi-like scheme that defrauded more than 24 victims out of more than $8.15 million. Koo was selling investment products through iFast Financial Pte Ltd.

South Africa

Sona Pillay, 54, and Michael Philip Adam Haldane, 55, was arrested in connection with the R2.8 billion BHI Trust Ponzi scheme. Craig Roy Warrine, 60, was previously sentenced to 25 years in prison in connection with the scheme. Pillay, the managing director of Rubicon Trust Company, had attempted to flee the country unsuccessfully. The BHI Trust scheme began in 2008 and promised returns exceeding 10%.

Neil Leon De Waal was arrested on charges relating to his recruitment of investors in the GS Partners metaverse fraud case.

Zimbabwe

Zhao Jiatong, a Chinese national, was arrested in connection with the E-Creator Ponzi scheme.

May 2024 Ponzi Scheme Roundup

Below is a summary of Ponzi scheme activity reported for May 2024. There were at least 11 new Ponzi schemes revealed this month and 4 guilty pleas. Ponzi schemers received more than 70 years of prison sentences. The average age of the fraudsters was about 48 years old. Please feel free to post comments about these or other Ponzi schemes that I may have missed. 

Jarod Cervoni, 45, was charged in connection with a Ponzi-like scheme that defrauded investors out of $400,000. He ran the scheme through Square 1 Wellness and Square 1 Performance.

Derek Vincent Chu, 41, of California, was indicted in connection with a $39 million alleged Ponzi scheme. The scheme involved over 100 people and involved investments in the supposed purchase and resale of NBA tickets.

Idin Dalpour, 39, of New York, was indicted on charges that he was running a Ponzi scheme that defrauded victims out of at least $43 million. Dalpour represented he was investing in a Las Vegas hospitality business and a crypto trading operation. The scheme was run from 2020 through 2024. Dalpour did not invest the money but instead used the money for gambling and tuition for his children, among other things. 

Schlomo Erez, 56, of Israel, pleaded guilty to conspiring with Eliyahu “Eli” Weinstein to run a Ponzi scheme involving $35 million. Four of Erez’s conspirators – Christopher Anderson, 47, Richard Curry, 36, Alaa Hattab, 35, and Joel Wittels, 57 – previously pleaded guilty to the scheme. Weinstein had previously run a scheme through Optimus Investments Inc. and Tryon Management Group LLC that defrauded victims out of $230 million. Weinstein had been sentenced to 24 years in prison but his sentenced was commuted by then President Trump after he had served less than 8 years.

Michael French, 40, of South Carolina, was ordered to pay the SEC nearly $25 million.  French sold high-yield promissory notes under his TikTok handle @moneyjust flows. He promised returns of 12% through low-risk investments.

Rand Heckler, 67, of New York, was sentenced to 2½ years in prison and ordered to pay about $919,999 in connection with a Ponzi scheme that defrauded victims out of $1 million. Heckler solicited funds into a hedge fund of stocks and securities.

David Kagel, 85, of California, pleaded guilty to promoting a $9.5 million Ponzi scheme, Kagel, a disbarred California attorney, operated a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme that falsely guaranteed profits and promised to use artificial intelligence trading bots to generate returns. He also misrepresented that he held $11 million worth of Bitcoin in escrow to guarantee the investments against losses. David Gilbert Saffron, 51, of Australia, and Vincent Anthony Mazzotta Jr., 52, of Los Angeles, were charged in December 2023 for their roles in the same cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme and have both pleaded not guilty.

Joshua Link and Jed Wood, of Texas, were sued by the CFTC in connection with the Agridime LLC cattle scheme that solicited more than $161 million from investors. They represented that investor dollars would be used to buy and sell cattle and promised annual returns of 15% to 20%. Investors thought they were buying a head of live cattle, typically for $2,000, and Agridime was supposed to take care of the actual feeding and caring for the cattle via farmers with whom Agridime partnered, until the cattle was ready to be processed and the beef sold.

John Masanotti, Jr., 69, was charged in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme run through Middlesex Mortgage Group LLC based in Connecticut. The scheme defrauded at least 10 investors out of more than $10 million. Masanotti promised returns of between 10% and 20% annually from investments in foreign currency in the fund known as the Middlesex Fund or the MMG Fund.

Joseph Meli, 42, and Steven Simmons, 48, were charged in connection with a ticket reselling business run through Sideris Capital Partners. They raised $81 million from 125 investors, and $48 million was repaid to earlier investors.

Frank Lynold Mercado, of North Carolina, and his advisory firm, Tiger Wolf Capital, LLC, were charged by the SEC on allegations that they were running a Ponzi scheme that defrauded over 100 investors. They raised more than $1.4 million claiming they were receiving a “50+” return on investments in securities.

Matthew Motil, 42, was charged by the SEC on allegations that he was running an $11 million Ponzi scheme. Motil hosted a podcast called The Cash Flow King and allegedly defrauded 50 investors. Motil also reached a plea deal in connection with a parallel criminal investigation. Matthew Harriton, 52, was also charged by the SEC in connection with the scheme.

Steven Pasko and Jo Wander were sued on allegations that they were running a $600 million fraudulent scheme through 777 Partners. The lawsuit alleges that 777 was double-pledging assets.

Surage Roshan Perera of New York was sentenced to 6½ years in prison and ordered to pay $6.3 million in restitution in connection with a scheme run through Janues Capital Inc. Perera was an investment advisor and represented that he could purchase stock in companies that traded on the NADSAQ and NYSE at discounted prices. He sent fraudulent confirmation notices to his victims. About 15 victims were harmed in the scheme. Perera claimed to exercise a trading strategy called “options straddles” that would not only prevent any trading losses but also, for some of the supposed investments, guaranteed returns on the investment of at least 9% and up to as much as 50%.

Della Fay Perez, of Texas, was arrested on charges that she misappropriated distributions checks from the Robert Allen Stanford receivership. Perez was a neutral third-party responsible for distributing $5.9 billion in restitution to Stanford victims. Approximately 21 checks payable to victims totaling about $460,000 that were deposited into Perez’s IOLTA account never made it to the victims.

Volodimyr Pigida, 49, of Florida, was sentenced to 14 years and 4 months in prison in connection with am $11 million Ponzi scheme. Pigida and his wife, Marina Bondarenko, operated a ‘work-at-home’ email scheme named Trend Sound Promoter. They sold ad-promoting packages and investors were to be paid for email marketing. Pigida failed to show up for his sentencing but was later found hiding behind a false wall in a relative’s house.

Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin, both 39, of Estonia, made their initial appearance in their criminal case in Washington following the Estonian government authorizing extradition. Authorities allege that they defrauded hundreds of thousands of victims to purchase contracts in a cryptocurrency mining service called HashFlare. The scheme brought in more than $575 million. The defendants offered contracts under which customers could pay a fee to rent a percentage of HashFlare’s mining operations in exchange for the virtual currency produced by their portion of the operation.

David Gilbert Saffron and his company, Circle Society, were charged by the CFTC in connection with an alleged scheme involving binary options on foreign exchange and cryptocurrency. The scheme allegedly defrauded investors out of $11 million. Saffron guaranteed returns of up to 300%.  

John Sfraga pleaded guilty to charges in connection with a fictitious cryptocurrency scheme. Sfraga promised returns as high as 60% in three months. Investors lost more than $1.3 million. 

John Michael Thibodeaux, 44, of Louisiana, was arrested on allegations that he was running a Ponzi scheme rather than investing the investors’ money as promised. He paid some victims returns of 10% to 14% per month for about 5 months. 

INTERNATIONAL PONZI SCHEME NEWS 

Australia

Jack Alexander Endersby, 24, was charged on allegations that he was running a Ponzi scheme that defrauded victims out of $2 million. 

John Louis Anthony Bigatton pleaded guilty to his role in the Bitconnect Ponzi scheme. Bigatton promoted the scheme on social media, seminars and in face-to-face meetings with investors.

Daniel Ali, the former director of DanFX Trade Pty Ltd., was sentenced to 7 years and 3 months in prison after he pleaded guilty to running a fraudulent foreign exchange trading business. 

Canada

David Villanueva aka David Carter, 62, was arrested on allegations that he defrauded investors out of more than $1.4 million. The scheme was run through The Factoring Collective. He was accused of running a fake law firm in one city and pretended to be a psychologist in another.

Aiden Pleterski, 25, and Colin Murphy, 27, were arrested on charges relating to an alleged $30 million cryptocurrency and foreign exchange investment scheme. They ran the scheme through AP Private Equity Limited, and Pleterski only invested 2% and spent at least $16 million buying 10 luxury cars, travel and renting a lakefront mansion. 

England

Jonathan Denton, 64, a lawyer formerly with Locke Lord, was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Investors collectively lost around £30 million in the scheme that was run with Simon Oakley.

India

Mohan Kumar Parida, the managing director of Way to Add India Pvt Ltd, was arrested on charges relating toa  scheme in which he promised investors 26% interest per month for 3 months. Investors were also promised a bonus of 2% for enrolling new members. The scheme defrauded 2,000 investors. 

South Africa

Johann Steynberg passed away in Brazil while under house arrest. Steynberg ran a bitcoin scheme through Mirror Trading International.

Craig Warriner, 60, was sentenced to 25 years in prison and was banned from BHI Trust for 30 years on account of his running a Ponzi scheme in which about 2,000 investors lost over R1.2 billion.

Russia

Lilia Nuriyeva was sentenced to 3 years in prison in connection with the Finiko Ponzi scheme. The company’s co-founder, Kirill Doronin, is still awaiting trial. The scheme caused an estimated $1.1 billion in losses. The scheme promised returns from cryptocurrency and stock trading. 

Zimbabwe

Shamiso Fred was arrested on allegations that he was running a Ponzi scheme through African Business Women Association. Investors were required to pay an agreed amount to fund business projects running for up to 48 months, but ABWA failed to pay out monthly profits.

April 2024 Ponzi Scheme Roundup

Below is a summary of Ponzi scheme activity reported for April 2024. There were at least 13 new Ponzi schemes revealed this month. Ponzi schemers received more than 25 years of prison sentences. The average age of the fraudsters was about 52 years old. Please feel free to post comments about these or other Ponzi schemes that I may have missed. 

Michael Philip Atkins, 51, was sentenced to 3 years and 3 months in connection with a foreign exchange trading scheme that involved more than $18 million. The scheme defrauded 1,300 investors and was run through Singapore-based Aureus Capital. Atkins was extradited to Singapore last month.

Patrick Churchville, of Rhode Island, and his investment advisory firm, ClearPath Wealth Management LLC, had a final judgment and permanent injunction entered against them in the SEC action alleging they were running a Ponzi scheme. The scheme involved at least $27 million of losses.

Irina Dilkinska, 42, was sentenced to 4 years in prison and ordered to forfeit $111 million for her role as the head of legal and compliance in the $4 billion OneCoin scheme. Dilkinska had pleaded guilty last year. The co-founder of the scheme, Karl Sebastian Greenwood, was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year.  The other co-founder, Ruja Ignatova, remains at large. Former OneCoin attorney Mark Scott was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Charles Todd Hill, 58, of California, was sentenced to four years in prison and ordered to pay almost $9.5 million in restitution in connection with a real estate scheme that defrauded 11 victims. Hill is a former HGTV star from “Flip It to Win It.” Instead of using money to remodel homes, he spent it on luxury cars, vacations, and partying.

Zachary Horwitz had a final judgment entered against him in favor of the SEC in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme run through 1inMM Capital LLC that raised over $690 million. Horwitz had promised returns from the supposed sale of movie rights to HBO and Netflix, although no such sales actually took place.

Jebara Igbara aka Jay Mazini, 28, an Instagram influencer, was sentenced to 7 years in prison in connection with a Ponzi scheme involving cryptocurrency.  Igbara’s scheme targeted the Muslim community in New York through his company called Halal Capital LLC.

Timothy France Johnson, 61, of Texas, was indicted on charges that he operated a $3 million Ponzi scheme through his companies, BOLO Entertainment LLC, BOLO Sports LLC and Shoot N’2 Sports LLC. Johnson promised investors their funds would be used to promote pre-season NBA games.

Adrian Kawuba, 34, of Massachusetts, was sentenced to 2 years and 3 months in prison and ordered to pay $625,000 in restitution in connection with an African Sports Ponzi scheme. Kawuba promised returns from investments in short term financing of youth sports venture in Africa. The scheme involved 26 fraudulent deals with over $2.2 million in funds. 

Douglas Lien, 82, of New Mexico, was sentenced to 4 years in prison and ordered to pay nearly $5 million in restitution in connection with a Ponzi scheme through Westend Investments. The scheme took in $14.2 million from 45 investors.

Eshaq M. Nawabi was ordered to pay $9 million in a CFTC action that alleged that Nawabi and his companies Nawabi Enterprise and Hyperion Consulting Inc. were running a fraudulent scheme promising profits of between 8% and 25% per month from foreign exchange trading.

Darren Robinson, 54, and his firm, The QYU Holdings Inc., were ordered to pay penalties in the amount of $11.8 million in connection with a Ponzi-like foreign exchange scheme. QYU claimed the fund did not have a single losing month and investors were promised guaranteed returns. They claimed that the firm was only paid on trading profits, not investor principal. Robinson misappropriated the investors’ funds and deposited them into an account he controlled. He used the funds to pay personal expenses, including luxury cruises, airfare, luxury vehicle purchases, real property purchases, credit cards payments, and other daily living expenses.

Ricky Southers was sued by New Hampshire state attorney general on allegations that his company Southers Construction was running a Ponzi scheme that involved $500,000. Southers relied on new customer deposits to finance new projects.

Martin Sumichrast settled SEC charges against him in connection with the Ponzi scheme run by Rick Siskey through Stone Street Partners. Siskey had been accused of orchestrating a $50 million Ponzi scheme, and he killed himself in 2016. Sumichrast agreed to pay $22,5000 to settle SEC charges against him. 

April Waidman aka April Simon aka April Marie is accused of running a puppy Ponzi scheme. Waidman sold the same puppies to multiple buyers. She operates using the names Simon Doxies, Simon Bulldogs, and April Doxies.

Michael Wayne Williams, 48, of Florida, was sentenced to one year and one day in connection with a scheme run through Highguard Capital and its affiliated entities, Guardian Opportunity Fund and Guardian Opportunity Management. Williams took $3.6 million from investors but used the money for unauthorized purposes, including to settle civil lawsuits accusing him of fraud and to repay investors from discontinued funds that he previously managed.

Marley Wynter ran House of Sport in what is alleged to be a poker Ponzi scheme. Wynter has disappeared, and $40 million in returns are owing.

INTERNATIONAL PONZI SCHEME NEWS 

Canada

Craig Michael Thompson and his companies, Black Box Management Corp. and Invader Management Ltd. were accused of running a $150 million Ponzi scheme that defrauded approximately 1,000 investors.

Curtis Gordon Quigley, 56, and Kathleen Treadgold, 56 turned themselves in after being charged in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme run through Group Venture Inc. They offered securities in the form of promissory notes and guaranteed investors returns from the flipping of real property.

Cherie Evangeline White and her company, KingdomINvestments2015 Inc. were fined by authorities based upon findings that they were operating a real estate Ponzi scheme that promised returns of 10% to 30% and lost $776,000 of investor funds. White represented that the funds would help house people who faced barriers to housing because of the purchase, improvement, and sale of properties at a profit.

Europe

In a joint enforcement effort involving 400 law enforcement officers across 11 countries, 9 suspects were arrested in the JuicyFields investment scheme. The scheme allegedly laundered profits totaling $692.2 million and involved medical marijuana. There were approximately 550,000 participants worldwide who had to invest at least 50 euros in this e-growing opportunity that promised returns of at least 100%, and up to 168%, annually. JuicyFields advertised on social media and promised returns from investment in cannabis cultivation for medicinal purposes. Spanish authorities called the investigation “Operation Stoner.”

Hong Kong

Authorities issues a securities fraud warning against ProCap, which offered rates of return of 6% to 42% per month. The scheme involved in prediction games, together with other benefits including referral incentives.

India

Amber Dalal, 59, was accused of operating a Ponzi scheme through Dalal’s Ritz Consultancy Services. He promised monthly returns of 1.5% to 1.8% and told investors that he invested their money in risk-free markets, including commodities. The scheme involved over 600 investors and approximately $46.7 million. Dalal defrauded many investors in the U.S.

Vinod Khute is wanted on allegations that he is running a Ponzi scheme through VIPS Group of Companies and Global Affiliate Business. Khute is believed to be the mastermind of the crypto exchange, wallet services, and foreign exchange trading through M/s Kana Capital Limited. Khute established the following companies to run the scheme: VIPSWALLET Pvt Ltd, VIPSTRADE Finance Private Limited, Kana Capitals Limited, Global Affiliate Business (GAB), VIPS Securities, and VIPS Properties.

Monica Tuli was arrested in connection with an alleged scheme run through Nature Heights Infra Limited that she ran with Neeraj Arora and Gaurav Chhabra. The scheme involved real estate and promised investors that they could double their money.

Muniraju GV was arrested on allegations that he was running a Ponzi scheme through Akshay Fortune Developers.

Assets of Methuku Ravinder and his family were attached in connection with a scheme that defrauded more than 10,000 people. The scheme was run through Sun Pariwar Group of companies, including Methuku Chit Fund Pvt. Ltd, Methuku Ventures Ltd., Metsun Nidhi Ltd., Methuku Herbal Limited, and Methuku Medical and Herbal Foundation. Ravinder promised returns of up to 100% per year.

Raj Kundra had his assets seized in connection an alleged Bitcoin Ponzi scheme.

Namibia

Coenraad Botha, 69, and his Zimbabwean wife Charlotte Murove, 32, were arrested in connection with a cryptocurrency scheme involving $8.5 million, through CBI Exchange Namibia (Pty) Ltd aka CBI Global fka Uhuru Tribe or Uhuru Cash.

South Africa

Authorities froze the bank account of Piggy Farm Trading (Pty) Ltd. based on allegations that it ran a Ponzi scheme in which individuals could purchase up to 50 virtual pigs. The scheme involved a digital “Metaverse Piggy Farm” where the investments were supposedly risk-free because ‘dead’ pigs would be substituted with another one. Investors purchased a virtual prig for R2750 each and would be paid R550 per month for 12 months, and after 12 months, the pig would be returned to Piggy Farm Trading. The scheme promised returns of 140%. The scheme was run by Mthokozisi, Sphamandla and Siyabonga Ngcobo.

Johann Steynberg died while under house arrest for masterminding the cryptocurrency scheme run through Mirror Trading International.

Taiwan

David Pan was charged along with his company, Ace Exchange, on allegations that he was running a scheme through a cryptocurrency trading platform. Prosecutors allege that there were losses of $10.6 million affecting 162 victims.

March 2024 Ponzi Scheme Roundup

Below is a summary of Ponzi scheme activity reported for March 2024. There were at least 12 new Ponzi schemes revealed this month. Ponzi schemers received more than 25 years of prison sentences and 4 guilty pleas. The average age of the fraudsters was about 47 years old. Please feel free to post comments about these or other Ponzi schemes that I may have missed. 

Will Allen, 36, and Susan Daub, 54, were charged by the SEC in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme run through multiple companies under the name Capital Finance. The scheme involved $31 million, about 40 investors, and ran from 2012 to 2015, promising returns of up to 18%. Allen is a former Miami Dolphins, New York Giants and New England Patriots cornerback.

David Brend, 49, and Gustavo Rodriguez, 47, were convicted in connection with a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme run through IcomTech. Icomtech was launched in 2018 by David Carmona, who guaranteed up to 2.8% daily profits from cryptocurrency trading and mining. Carmona, Marco Ruiz-Ochoa, and Juan Arellano have all previously pleaded guilty to the scheme.

Joseph Carvajales had a consent order entered against him in the CFTC case against both him and The W Group (WTG). Carvajales is required to pay $2.4 million in restitution and pay a $1 million civil penalty. The scheme operated from 2013 to 2020 and promised profits of up to 4% from a commodity trading algorithm. Larry Ramos Mendoza had a default order entered against him, resulting in restitution and penalties of more than $29 million. 

Jason Cloth, of Illinois, was accused of running a Ponzi scheme in a class action filed by 100 victims. The complaint alleges that the victims have lost $88 million. Cloth is a Canadian producer who allegedly ran a Ponzi-style investment scheme that exploited investors’ unfamiliarity with movie financing. A class action was filed identifying ventures affiliated with Cloth, including BRON Studios, Creative Wealth Media Finance Corp. and C2 Motion Picture Group. Cloth was also involved with a Canadian entity known as Crystal Wealth operated by Clayton Smith. 

Vincent Dispoto Jr., 66, of New Jersey, was charged in connection with an alleged $5 million Ponzi scheme. The scheme was run through Liberty Mortgage Services and allegedly defrauded at least 30 victims. Dispoto falsely promised to invest funds in low-risk products with guaranteed returns, such as municipal bonds and certificates of deposit.

Thomas Huling, 60, of Rhode Island, was sentenced to 8 years in prison and ordered to pay about $11 million in restitution in connection with a Ponzi scheme that he ran from 2008 to 2018. Huling promised returns from investment projects that included high-yielding bond trading platforms, a car emissions reduction technology, and an online advertising and marketing company. Instead of investing the money as promised, Huling spent it on a lavish lifestyle, including golf fees, travel, and gambling.

Siddharth Jawahar, 36, of Texas, was indicted in connection with an alleged $36 million Ponzi scheme run through Swiftarc Capital. Jawahar invested the funds in Philip Morris Pakistan. The Texas State Securities Board had issued an order revoking Swiftarc’s registration, but Jawahar failed to advise his investors of the revocation.

Samuel J. Mancini, 57, was sentenced to 5 years and 11 months in prison in connection with a Ponzi scheme in which he lured in $10.4 million from investors. Mancini ran the scheme through Outdoor Capital Partners LLC, a purported venture capital and private equity firm. That company was the managing director of OCP Italia Fund LLC, a private investment fund. Mancini promised investors returns of approximately 70% of Outdoor Capital’s operating profits. Mancini had previously pleaded guilty to the scheme.

Shane Doovan Moore, 36, of Washington, was arrested on charges that he operated a Ponzi scheme through Quantum Donovan LLC. Moore claimed he was purchasing and operating cryptocurrency mining equipment and that investors would receive 1% of their investment daily. 

Regine Norman aka Regine Ellis, 69, of New York, was sentenced to 3½ to 7 years in prison and ordered to pay $842,000 in restitution in connection with a real estate Ponzi scheme involving almost $1 million. Norman represented that investor funds would be used to purchase discounted properties at a private auction, but no properties were ever purchased.

Long Nguyen, 35, of California. was sentenced to 2½ years in prison and ordered to pay about $1.5 million in restitution for running a Ponzi scheme that defrauded at least 20 people. Nguyen had pleaded guilty last year to operating the scheme and making false statements to investors. He represented that he was a billionaire, that he had access to pre-IPO investment opportunities, and that he managed a real estate investment trust that would provide monthly income.

Gabriel Ochoa, Dulce Ochoa, Maria Saravia, Gloria Castaneda, Ismael Zarco Sanchez, Roberto Zavala, Gabriel Arguelles, Hector Aquino, Orlin Wilifredo Turcios Castro, Carmen De La Cruz, Elizabeth Escoto, Reyna Guiffaro, Marco Antonio Lemus, Juan Puac, Luis Serrano, Julio Taffinder, and Claudia Velazquez were charged in connection with a scheme run through CryptoFX LLC. The scheme promised returns of 15% to 100% and raised $300 million from investors from over 40,000 victims. The SEC charged the firm's main operators, Mauricio Chavez and Giorgio Benvenuto, in 2022. The scheme targeted the Latino community.

Pathyam Patel aka Pat Patel, 23, was arrested in Alabama on charges relating to his sale of over $4,000,000 in investment contracts through Infinity Wealth Management, an investment advisory firm. Patel guaranteed no loss to the investors’ principal investment but did not invest the funds as promised.

Joshua Pukini and Ryan Young of California are being investigated and had their homes searched in connection with an investigation of an alleged Ponzi scheme run through AB Capital. An investor alleges that over $100 million was involved in the scheme that offered first and second deeds of trust on real property.

Nicholas Salzano, 65, of New Jersey, pleaded guilty to charges relating to a Ponzi scheme run through National Realty Investment Advisors LLC that defrauded 2,000 investors out of $658 million. 

Frantz Simeon was sentenced to 2 years in prison in connection with a Ponzi scheme run through First Black Enterprises Inc. that targeted the Haitian-American community in New York. Simeon raised over $350,000 based on promises that the investment was risk-free and would generate 10% monthly returns.

Joel Wittels, 57, of New Jersey, pleaded guilty to charges that he conspired with Eliyahu “Eli” Weinstein, in connection with a $35 million scheme run through Optimus Investments Inc. and Tyron Management Group LLC. Weinstein had previously been convicted and sentenced in connection with a $240 million Ponzi scheme. Wittels hid Weinstein’s prior conviction and misused investor funds. Christopher Anderson, 47, Richard Curry, 36, and Alaa Hattab, 35, previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit securities fraud and are awaiting sentencing. Charges are still pending against Weinstein, Aryeh “Ari” Bromberg, and Shlomo Erez.

Trent Witteveen, 39, of Michigan, was charged in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme run through the timber harvesting business in the names of Titan Timber and Titans Timber LLC. Witteveen promised returns if investors provided investment capital to purchase timber harvesting rights from landowners. In most cases, no contracts for timber harvesting existed.

INTERNATIONAL PONZI SCHEME NEWS 

Argentina

Joao Felipe Costa aka Antonio Inacio Da Silva Neto, and Fabrica Farias Campos, a Brazilian couple, were arrested in Argentina in connection with a $400 million cryptocurrency scheme run through Braiscompany. The couple will be extradited to Brazil.

Australia

David Sipina pleaded guilty to charges in connection with the scheme run through the Courtenay House group of companies. Authorities have alleged that the scheme involved approximately 585 investors and $180 million. Former Courtenay House director Tony Iervasi pled guilty in 2022.

Jack Endersby, 24, was accused of running a Ponzi scheme that took in approximately $2 million from victims. Endersby promised monthly returns of 3%.

Canada

Sylvain Bélair was charged on allegations that he was running a Ponzi scheme through Cosmodome. The scheme involved at least 47 investors who invested about $2 million. Patrick Boisvert has also been charged in connection with the scheme.

Chile

Alberto Change Rajii, 50, was charged in Malta on a theft crime, renewing hope among defrauded victims in an alleged Ponzi scheme run by Rajii in Chile that he will be deported from Malta to face charges in Chile. The scheme in Chile allegedly defrauded victims out of over $80 million and was run through his supposed international private equity and venture capital firm called Grupo Arcano. Rajii’s investment firm Onix promised returns as high as 1.5% per month.

England

Michael Stanley, 67, pleaded guilty to charged that was running a horse-betting syndicate known as Layezy Racing Syndicate as a Ponzi scheme. The scheme promised its 6,000 members risk-free racehorse ownership. Approximately £44 million was paid into the scheme. Stanley claimed that his system gave him an 8.17% advantage in the betting markets,

India

B Vijayaragavan, 43, was arrested as part of an investigation into the alleged Ponzi scheme run by MyV3 Media Private Limited.

Vinod Khute was accused of running a Ponzi scheme involving foreign exchange trading through VIPS Group of Companies and Global Affiliate Business Company. 

Ambar Dalal was charged in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme run through Ritz Consultancy Services Company. Dalal promised 2% returns per month and defrauded over 1,000 investors.

South Africa

Prishanta Roshan Sewpaul, 27, was arrested in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme run with Letishya Nicolette Moses, 33. They promised returns from bulk fuel sales. Moses was employed as a logistics manager for a company supplying fuel oil to ships.

Uganda

Mr Tinyefuza, 33, was charged in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme. Tinyefuza is a real estate dealer who persuaded investors to register on an application called USwind.

February 2024 Ponzi Scheme Roundup

Below is a summary of Ponzi scheme activity reported for February 2024. There were at least 6 new Ponzi schemes revealed this month. Ponzi schemers received more than 134 years of prison sentences and 4 guilty pleas. The average age of the fraudsters was about 53 years old. Please feel free to post comments about these or other Ponzi schemes that I may have missed. 

Vladimir Artamonov was accused of running a $2.9 million Ponzi scheme and his investment program run through Project Information Arbitrage fund was shut down. Artamonov is a Harvard MBA graduate and he used alumni network to defraud at least 29 people. He projected returns of 500% to 1,000% by claiming to be able to identify investments Berkshire Hathaway would make ahead of the market from public state insurance files.

John Feloni, 64, and his company, Stock Squirrel, Inc., had judgments entered against them in a case brought by the SEC. They were ordered to pay over $2 million in disgorgement. The scheme defrauded approximately 180 investors out of almost $2.5 million by promising them returns from the development of a smartphone application offering financial services to the youth sector.

Gary L. Gauthier, 74, of Florida, was sentenced to 5 years in prison in connection with a Ponzi scheme he ran with David Dreslin. The scheme defrauded about 40 investors out of $6 million. Gauthier was the former host of the Christian radio show “It’s God Money.”

Rafael Alberto Vargas Gonzalez aka Rafael Vargas, 42, was barred from the securities industry by the SEC in connection with a fraudulent scheme run through Empirex Capital LLC. The SEC had alleged that Gonzalez raised at least $6.6 million from at least 162 investors and promised returns from crypto assets as well as from stocks and bonds. The money was not used for that purpose and Gonzalez misappropriated about $1.8 million. The scheme ran from 2018 through 2023.

Rodney “Rocket” Grubbs of Indianna was accused of running a Ponzi scheme through his company, Pickleball Rocks. Grubbs held himself out as “pickleball’s ultimate ambassador.” He offered investment opportunities in his company that promoted tournaments, equipment, and clothing in the pickleball industry. About 140 investors invested several million dollars, and they were promised guaranteed returns of 12%.

Alan John Hanke, 50, was charged in New Yok on allegations that he was running a Ponzi scheme through IOLO Capital. Hanke promised investors high returns within short periods of time by investing in, among other things, “standby letters of credit,” “medium term notes,” and “high yield bonds.” Hanke filed bankruptcy in 2021, but did not disclose the millions of dollars from investors.

Ronald Walter Hannes, of Washington, was sentenced to 5 years of probation after pleading guilty to operating a Ponzi scheme and defrauding investors out of more than $3 million. Hannes ran the scheme through Hannes Financial Services, Inc. and defrauded at least 21 investors. Investors thought they were investing in “high rate, tax free” bond investments and they were provided with fictitious account documents. The scheme ran from 2012 to 2020.

Marlin Hershey, 54, and Dana Bradley, 53, of North Carolina, were sentenced to 21 months and 10 months, respectively. They had pleaded guilty to running a scheme through Performance Holdings through which they offered unregistered securities in Performance Retire on Rentals and Distressed Lending Fund.  They skimmed 10% off the top of some of the investments without telling their clients. 

Xue Samuel Lee, 35, and Brenda Indah Chunga aka “Bitcoin Beautee”, 43, were charged by the SEC in connection with the fraudulent scheme run through HyperFund. The SEC alleged that for almost two years, Lee conducted a $1.7 billion Ponzi scheme. The scheme was first launched through HyperCapital and then 6 months later was relaunched as HyperFund. It was known as HyperNation at the time of its collapse in 2022. Investors were promised daily returns of 0.5% to 1% of the value of their investment until they earned triple the value of their investment. The scheme was also alleged to be a pyramid scheme. Criminal charges have also been brought against Lee, Chunga and Rodney Burton aka Bitcoin Rodney, 54.

Kumar Arun Neppalli, 57, of North Carolina, was sentenced to 3 years and 8 months in prison and ordered to pay almost $1 million in restitution in connection with a Ponzi scheme. Neppalli targeted the Indian American community in an affinity fraud and promised them returns from real estate investments. He misrepresented that he had insider knowledge of development plans in the town of Chapel Hill due to his employment in the city and that he needed money within a short time frame, somedays the same day, to facilitate closing a transaction. 

Christopher John Pettit, 56, of Texas, was sentenced to 50 years in prison in connection with a $65 million Ponzi scheme that he ran through his law firm, Chris Pettit and Associates, PC. Pettit ran the scheme for more than 20 years, falsely promising to provide various legal and financial services. Pettit opened trustee accounts with client funds and redirected the funds to his personal account. He also deceived clients into investing in high-yield bonds but instead diverted the funds to his personal account. He further misrepresented that he was a qualified intermediary for real estate exchanges, taking in millions of dollars.

Carl R. Ruderman, 82, of Florida, the former chair of 1 Global Capital LLC, was sentenced to 5 years in prison in connection with the $250 million Ponzi scheme. Ruderman raised about $330 million for the scheme. Co-conspirators who have previously pleaded guilty are Alan Heide, 65, Jan Atlas, 78, Steven Allen Schwartz, 78, and Andrew Ledbetter, 81. 1 Global promised returns from pay day loans to small businesses at high interest rates.

Thomas Nicholas Salzano, 65, of New Jersey, pleaded guilty to running a $658 million real estate Ponzi scheme through National Realty Investment Advisors LLC. The scheme defrauded more than 2,000 investors. Salzano was the “shadow CEO” to conceal his history of fraud from investors, and Rey E. Grabato II was the CEO. Investors placed the funds into NRIA Partners Portfolio Fund I LLC.

Brian Simms, 46, of Indiana, pleaded guilty to a Ponzi-like scheme run through Brendanwood Financial Brokerage LLC. The scheme brought in almost $4 million. He is a licensed insurance broker, but not licensed to sell securities. He persuaded 20 people to liquidate their 401ks, annuities, and similar accounts and give their funds to him to invest. He falsified documentation to misrepresent that he had invested in legitimate investments. Simms agreed to pay more than $2.62 million in restitution to the victims.

Peter J. Strauss, 45, of South Carolina, pleaded guilty to his role in connection with the DC Solar Ponzi scheme run by Jeff and Paulette Carpoff. Strauss admitted that he knowingly aided and abetted the transfer of funds from Carpoff. Strauss was an attorney, a captive insurance promoter, and founder of Strauss Global, an advisory services firm.

Phillip Wasserman, 67, was sentenced to 15 years in prison in a Ponzi scheme case in which a jury found him guilty of fraud charges. Wasserman is a former lawyer and licensed insurance agent who solicited elderly investors to put their money into a new insurance venture called FastLife. Wasserman ran the scheme with Kenneth Rossman. Wasserman called himself the Annuity King.

Eliyahu “Eli” Weinstein aka Mike Konig, 48, and Aryeh “Ari” Bromberg, 49, were charged in New Jersey in connection with an alleged fraudulent scheme run through Optimus Investments Inc. and Tyron Management Group LLC. The scheme promised returns from supposed access to deals involving scarce medical supplies, baby formula, and first-aid kits destined for Ukraine. Christopher Anderson, 47, Richard Curry, 36, and Alaa Mohamed Hattab, 35, previously pleaded guilty in connection with the scheme, and Joel Wittels and Shlomo Erez still have criminal charges pending against them. Weinstein’s previous 24-year prison sentenced was commuted by the then President following his conviction in connection with a $230 million real estate Ponzi scheme. The Optimus Investment scheme was started soon after Weinstein was released from prison, using the fake name Mike Konig so investors would not know of Weinstein’s involvement.

Robert Wisnicki, 45, was sentenced to 6½ years in prison in connection with an $18.8 million Ponzi scheme he ran through Wisnicki & Associates LLP and Wisnicki Neuhaser LLP. He persuaded investors to invest in real estate opportunities. Wisnicki used funds from the Wisnicki firms’ clients who did not participate in the real estate investments, which were held in trust in the firms’ IOLA accounts and transferred those funds to the investors to conceal the losses to their investments. 

John J. Woods, 59, of Georgia, was sentenced to nearly 8 years in prison in connection with a $110 million Ponzi scheme run through companies Horizon Private Equity III LLC and Livingston Group Asset Management Company, doing business as Southport Capital. Woods pleaded guilty to the scheme that was run from 2008 through 2021 and lost about $50 million of investors’ funds. More than 400 people were promised returns of 6% to 7% and lost their investments.

Edward Anthony Zimbardi, of Georgia, is under investigation in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme that involved cryptocurrency and promised 25% monthly returns. California and Canadian authorities have separately taken action. Zimbardi is a convicted felon and is the owner CryptoProgram, which collapsed in 2023.

INTERNATIONAL PONZI SCHEME NEWS 

Canada

Colin Murphy, 27, was sentenced to 5 months in jail for his refusal to turn over evidence relating to the Ponzi scheme run by Aiden Pleterski, 25, known as the Crypto King. Murphy refused to turnover an iPhone and hid it in a toilet caddy during a court-ordered search.

Charges were filed against Michael Ongun Gokturk and his companies, Einstein Exchange Inc., Einstein Capital Ltd., and Einstein Law Corporation (which was not a law firm). The scheme involved a supposed crypto trading platform providing sale and secure storage for user’s money and crypto assets. In reality, Gokturn transferred the deposits into his personal crypto wallet. At one point, the companies held more than $34 million in cash and crypto assets.

Charges were filed against Gary Lee Rathbun, a former radio host, on allegations that he was running a $72 million Ponzi scheme. Rathbun and his business partner, Doug Miller, lured in investors to invest into private companies associated with Northwest Capital. Approximately $25.5 million was invested by 187 clients into the related businesses. 

England

John Neil Hirst, 60, was charged with conspiracy to defraud in connection with an alleged £10 million Ponzi scheme that targeted British expatriates living in Mallorca. 

Guy Flintham, 46, confessed to a £19 million Ponzi scheme that defrauded 240 investors. 

Michael Thomson, the former chief executive of London Capital & Finance, is on trial on allegations that he ran a Ponzi scheme that collapsed in 2019. The scheme involved about 12,000 elderly investors and brough in nearly £240 million. Much of the money was used by Thomson on racehorses, luxury watches, and shotguns.

Iran

At least one person was arrested in connection with a scheme run through Kourosh Company that defrauded people out of approximately $35 million from cheap iPhones following a ban on them in Iran. The government’s ban on the registration of new iPhones created a black market for new phones in which customers have paid exorbitant prices, in some instances almost 3 times the market price for the phone. Kourosh called itself Iran’s “largest phone repair company” and promised to sell iPhones at a discounted price on the condition that it would deliver the phones in a few weeks. The main suspect, Amirhossein Sharifian, has fled to Turkey.

Jamaica

Authorities are investigating Warner Jamaica Media Limited as Ponzi scheme that allegedly defrauded 50,000 Jamaicans out of millions of dollars.

Nigeria

Authorities are investigating an alleged Ponzi scheme run by Aderemi Olufemi Adeoye.