A term named after a criminal from over a century ago has now become a
way of describing a certain fraudulent act involving investments. A “Ponzi
scheme” was coined after the man Charles Ponzi who in the early
1900’s was known for created
fraudulent investments that would return money back to the investors, and they would never actually
see any of the profits they were earning. While this scheme was not actually
originated by this man, he was one of the first in the U.S. to have succeeded
in taking such large amounts of money in his scheme that it was officially
named after him in 1920.
In New York, a couple has recently been charged with specific crime after
having fraudulently made their way into making $12 million in profit from
their Ponzi scheme. Andrew S. Mackey was convicted for the crime and has
been sentenced to spend 27 years behind bars for his actions. His “partner
in crime” and his wife, Inger L. Jensen, was also convicted for
the crime and is sentenced to time behind bars as well, though much less,
15 years.
Their charges were specifically for 15 counts of wire fraud, as well as
mail fraud and conspiracy; they were convicted of the crime in May of
this year and received their final sentencing just this week. According
to the United States Attorney, Yates, this couple had their scheme going
between the years of 2003-2007 and they presented themselves to the New
York public as successful financial experts as well as investment advisors.
The Examiner states that their actions had many people fooled into thinking that the
offshore investments they poured their money into would actually return
as a financial gain, and little did they know they would never see their
dollars again.
An
FBI Press Release claims that the husband and wife duo had their plan thoroughly thought
through to the point that the intermediaries they hired believed their
scheme and they would be the ones going out into the public finding new
investors. During their interrogations they portrayed the belief that
everything they were doing was not only legal, but helping their clients.
Mackey and Jensen’s scheme convinced over 150 people into investing
their money, more than $12 million, into their fraudulent accounts.
White collar crimes are not unheard of today, people seeking to make extra money can discover
ways in which to make more than they ever would have imagined. Ponzi schemes
are one of those crimes that have to continually be maintained in order
to keep the profit, and as more and more investigators look into the plans,
the harder it is to keep it going. Fortunately, here in the United States
we have the ability to fight any and all charges placed against us, no
matter the amount of evidence that may be piling up on the prosecutions
side. If you or someone you know has been accused of a crime of fraud,
contact a trusted and experienced
New York City criminal defense attorney.
At the Law Offices of Daniel A. Hochheiser
we are prepared to handle any and all criminal cases that may come our
way, and we want to help you. With over 36 years of criminal defense experience
behind our doors, we have had the privilege helping many clients either
reduce their sentencing or be dismissed all together. While we can make
no guarantees, we will do whatever we can in order to fight for you. Contact
our firm today to fill out a
free online case evaluation or call us today to set up an appointment. We want to aggressively fight
on your behalf; it’s not over for you yet!