[Originally posted in October 2010, now updated through 2021.] (Editors note: One of the best investigative journalists in the business is David Marchant. This story was first reported by David.) British citizen Sencer Sevket formed a mutual fund in the Cayman Islands after a U.S. federal court issued a warrant for his arrest on charges […]
Investment Fraud – "Guaranteed Returns" Was Really a Scam
Every week we hear about people who gave money to a promoter offering “guaranteed returns.” About the only thing guaranteed is the loss of all or most your money. Unless you are putting money into government savings bond, nothing is guaranteed. (Many of our readers would question the safety of savings bonds!) One of the […]
Victim Assaults Ponzi Scheme Promoter
by Brian Mahany Losing one’s life savings to a Ponzi scheme promoter would be devastating to anyone. We often see courtroom footage of victim’s families attacking defendants at sentencing hearings when emotions are the highest. Usually these assaults occur in connection with a homicide or sex crime. In Longwood, Florida it was the victim of […]
Hook ‘Em and Book ‘Em – Former Texas Longhorn Star Charged WIth Affinity Fraud
by Brian Mahany Three days ago I was in Bandera, Texas participating in my first “Cowboy Mardi Gras.” As a new Texas landowner and soon to be resident, it was fitting to begin spending time in my new hometown. (It was also 80 degrees while Milwaukee was a frigid 8!) Football is king in Texas […]
Painting the Mouse: Fraud Is All Around Us
by Joe Bird We usually write to tell another tale of economic fraud, most often about lending or mortgage fraud. The amount of money involved and the seemingly endless supply of greed provide a fertile ground for the growth of nearly every species of fraud, so we are always able to find new and interesting […]
More Audit Fraud – Tiny Illinois Town Loses $50 Million!
by Brian Mahany The little Illinois town of Dixon has less than 16,000 residents. Located in rural Lee county, Dixon was best known for being the boyhood home of former President Ronald Reagan. Now it is known for being the city that lost $50,000,000.00. That’s quite a feat considering the per capita income of Dixon is […]
A Sad Day For Elderly Investors In Texas
by Brian Mahany As much as we try to stay on top of every major fraud story, there are simply too many of them. Kudos to InvestmentNews Daily for their reporting today on John Langford. According to published reports, the victims of the convicted swindler will only receive back 2.8 cents for each dollar of […]
Former Bucks Player Indicted in Ponzi Scheme
[Updated 2021] It’s no secret that our headquarters office is less than a half mile from the Bradley Center, home of the Milwaukee Bucks. Although not a basketball fan, its hard to miss when a former Bucks player is indicted for allegedly operating a Ponzi scheme. Prosecutors in Newark, New Jersey unsealed a four count […]
What Does It Take To Become A Stockbroker? Apparently Nothing!
by Brian Mahany Most of our stockbroker fraud stories involve investment advisers failing to perform due diligence, stockbrokers making unsuitable recommendations, churning of accounts or failures to disclose conflicts of interest. Not this story. This week the SEC says Anthony Fields, along with his two “companies” Anthony Fields & Associates and Platinum Securities Brokers, simply […]
A Rolling Stone May Gather No Moss But A Rolling Stones Concert Promoter Gathers 9 Year Sentence
by Brian Mahany Day after day and the fraud stories keep rolling in. This one comes to us from Arizona where promoter Miko Dion Wady received a 9 year prison sentence for running a Ponzi scheme. Prosecutors say Wady lured investors into his scheme with promises of high returns and the chance to be involved […]