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Tag: FBI

FBI Says It Has Opened 291 New HYIP Cases And Has 780 Pending Cases Of High-Yield Fraud; Many Have ‘International Nexus,’ Agency Notes

How confident are you that the HYIP you’re flogging on the Ponzi boards isn’t already under investigation by any of a number of state or federal agencies? Court records show that the alleged Legisi HYIP Ponzi scheme (about $70 million) was under investigation by state and federal law-enforcement agencies even as promoters were pitching it.…

Sep 22, 2010
Pensacola Fraudsters Sentenced To Federal Prison; Pinnacle Quest International Vendors Sold ‘Tax And Credit Card Debt Elimination Scams,’ Federal Prosecutors, IRS Say

â€œThey helped form a series of sham business entities and then promoted fraudulent debt elimination tactics intended for the sole purpose of concealing income from the IRS.” — Victor S. O. Song, chief, IRS Criminal Investigation As the U.S. Department of Agriculture was conducting a “review” of claims made by affiliates of a purported “grocery”…

Sep 21, 2010
INTERPOL Chief Says His Identity Was Stolen In Fraud Bid On Facebook; Meanwhile, MPB Today Members Post Check-Waving Videos On Social-Media Sites And WebsiteTester.biz Gathers 400,000 Names And Email Addresses

Earlier this week the PP Blog reported that members of MPB Today were using YouTube and other sites to post images of checks drawn on a distressed Florida bank. The checks, which were supplied as purported “proof” of MPB Today’s legitimacy, may expose both the posters and the bank to security breaches and identity theft.…

Sep 18, 2010
Nevin Shapiro, Florida Man Who Ran ‘Grocery’ Ponzi Scheme, Pleads Guilty; Feds Say Con Gathered At Least $880 Million While Fraudster Leased Mercedes For $4,700 A Month

When Nevin Shapiro was arrested in New Jersey for running a wholesale grocery scam in Florida, the FBI described the scheme as a â€œperfect example of greed run amok.â€ Shapiro, who was charged both criminally and civilly earlier this year after investigators uncovered his long-running Ponzi scheme, now has pleaded guilty to securities fraud and…

Sep 16, 2010
UPDATE: Ponzi ‘Shakedown’ Suspects Who Impersonated Federal Agents Get 6 Months’ Home Detention And Are Placed On Probation For 2 Years

Three people charged with conspiring to impersonate federal agents in a bid to rattle the nerves of a Ponzi scheme suspect and recover money have been sentenced to 180 days of home confinement and placed on federal probation for two years. A fourth defendant in the shakedown scheme avoided a sentence of home confinement but…

Sep 13, 2010
BULLETIN: Ponzi Scheme Figure William Walters To Be Extradited From Argentina, FBI, Colorado AG Say; Another ‘Offshore’ Myth Exposed

BULLETIN: (UPDATED 9:32 P.M. EDT (U.S.A.) William L. Walters has been extradited to the United States from Argentina to face Ponzi scheme charges in Colorado, prosecutors announced. â€œThis extradition is the culmination of years of work and cooperation between my office and the FBI,â€ said Colorado Attorney General John Suthers. â€œIn this case, justice delayed…

Aug 30, 2010
BULLETIN: Ponzi Suspect Kills Self, New York Newspaper Reports; Ashvin Zaveri Was Implicated In $35 Million Swindle

A New York man implicated by the FBI and the IRS in a Ponzi scheme has killed himself, the Democrat and Chronicle of Rochester is reporting. It is at least the second Ponzi-related suicide in the United States in recent weeks. Florida Ponzi suspect Wayne McLeod, suspected of bilking federal employees, killed himself in Florida…

Aug 30, 2010
BULLETIN: Trevor Cook Sentenced To 25 Years In Federal Prison; Victims Lost At Least $158 Million In International Forex Ponzi Scheme That Traded On Religion

BULLETIN: Ponzi schemer Trevor Cook has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison for his role in an international Forex Ponzi scheme that gathered more than $190 million and fleeced victims out of more than $158 million. In ordering the prison term, U.S. District Judge James Rosenbaum sided with the prosecution’s recommendation of a…

Aug 24, 2010
BULLETIN: $200 Million Ponzi And Affinty-Fraud Scheme Alleged By Feds In New Jersey; Eli Weinstein Arrested By FBI

UPDATED 2:40 P.M. EDT (U.S.A) The Newark Star-Ledger and the Asbury Park Press are reporting that New Jersey real-estate developer Eli Weinstein has been arrested by the FBI in a Ponzi and affinity-fraud case that may involve $200 million or more. Both newspapers had photographers on the scene as the arrest was made this morning.…

Aug 12, 2010
EXPLOSIVE REVELATION: FBI, IRS Find More Than $400,000 In Stashed Loot In Trevor Cook Ponzi Case, Including More Than $200,000 In $100 Bills, Gold Coins, Watches, Baseball Cards

Trevor Cook’s brother was hiding more than $400,000 in cash and valuables from a $190 million Ponzi scheme, according to an extraordinary statement by the court-appointed receiver in the case. The loot was found July 23 — after Trevor Cook, whose plea agreement in the case required him to submit to a lie-detector test if…

Aug 5, 2010
PONZI NEWS/NOTES: Judge Says Matthew Pizzolato ‘Swindled The Salt Of The Earth’; Feds Allege New Scheme In New York; Henri Zogaib Arrested Again In Florida

EDITOR’S NOTE: The briefs below summarize recent developments in Ponzi cases or actions in new Ponzi cases. Sentenced: Matthew B. Pizzolato, 26, Tickfaw, La. Ripped off senior citizens in Ponzi scheme. In sentencing Pizzolato to 30 years in federal prison, U. S. District Judge Lance M. Africk said Pizzolato â€œstole from hard working Americansâ€ and…

Jul 23, 2010