In that position, Rocco solicited club members to invest in his company, Limestone Capital Services, which they were told provided wholesale financing of cigarette purchases for a tobacco shop located on the Shinnecock Native American Reservation. Therefore, the Court need not address whether Defendant is a danger to the community or the 18 U.S.C. 2:14-cr-00067-TLN (E.D. At least 385 of the perpetrators were sent to prison, with a total of nearly 5,000 years of cumulative prison sentences handed down. watch now. 1B1.13, cmt. Gurudeo Buddy Persaud, 47, was arrested and charged with operating a Ponzi scheme that promised risk-free returns derived from investing in the futures markets and other markets. Daniel Parrili, John Lauer, and Christopher Anderson met in a Wisconsin prison where, unsurprisingly, they were currently serving time for fraud-related charges. Wannakuwatte filed court papers this week saying the loss was really somewhere between $50 million and $80 million. An official website of the United States government. Wannakuwatte claimed that his companies, IMG and Relyaid, were involved in the international manufacture, shipment, and distribution of latex gloves and did more than $100 million of business with the Department of Veterans Affairs every year. Take the time to do your own research on the investments potentialand on the person making the offer. WASHINGTONDeepal Wannakuwatte, 63, of Sacramento, California, was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for a long-running fraud scheme, announced United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner,. A former owner of the Sacramento Capitals professional tennis team, Wannakuwatte purchased properties in Hawaii, Oregon and California. He is scheduled to be arraigned on March 21, 2014. DEEPAL WANNAKUWATTE, Defendant. WASHINGTONDeepal Wannakuwatte, 63, of Sacramento, California, was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for a long-running fraud scheme, announced United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner, Special Agent in Charge Monica M. Miller of the FBIs Sacramento Field Office, Acting Special Agent in Charge Thomas McMahon for the IRS-Criminal Investigation, and Special Agent in Charge Wade V. Walters of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Office of Inspector General. The case began in September 2013, when our Sacramento office was contacted by a representative of one of Wannakuwattes business associates who thought he might be the victim of a Ponzi scheme. He further avowed that these companies had annual revenues in the tens of millions of dollars. His assets will be liquidated to repay victims of a $150 million Ponzi scheme, and even the tennis team is gone, killed off by the league. Rocco was formerly the president of the Dix Hills Soccer Club, where he enjoyed exclusive access to company bank accounts. These individuals collectively are associated with 20 companies in 10 cities. Deepal, you are a sociopath, he said. Defendant requests the Court reduce his term of imprisonment due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Persaud was able to raise at least $1 million from investors. The Government filed an opposition. Indeed, authorities alleged that Rocco even used his position as club president to withdraw nearly $67,000 from the clubs bank accounts a move that nearly depleted club coffers if not for the generosity of club benefactors to cover the shortfalls. In addition to criminal charges, Joseph Signore and Paul Schumack also are facing civil fraud charges filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission. 135.) He claimed the funds obtained through the line of credit would be used to improve a glove manufacturing facility he owned in Olivehurst. Wannakuwatte told his victims he had $100 million worth of contracts to supply latex gloves to veterans hospitals, when in fact the contracts totaled just $25,000 a year. This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation. Donnie Wahlberg Pokes Fun At Brother In Wahlburgers Ads, 2012-2023, 2paragraphs Productions, LLC. 3582(c)(1)(A) is only available. This story was originally published November 13, 2014, 3:50 PM. Coincidentally, a related company funded with investor funds was, until recently, the beneficiary of an investment by Barbara Corcoran a star of CNBCs hit show Shark Tank. Wannakuwattes companies, IMG and Relyaid, were involved in the international manufacture, shipment, and distribution of latex gloves. . Ultimately, Wannakuwatte obtained well over $230 million from his victims. 25, 2020) ("General concerns about possible exposure to COVID-19 do not meet the criteria for extraordinary and compelling reasons for a reduction in sentence set forth in the Sentencing Commission's policy statement."). Fax Line:(916) 554-2900. The scheme, which spanned decades, ultimately caused at least $17 billion in losses to thousands of investors. (ECF No. In opposition, the Government argues the Court should deny Defendant's motion because Defendant failed to demonstrate extraordinary and compelling reasons to warrant release, he is a continuing danger to the community, and the 18 U.S.C. Recently, Ponzitracker.com compiled an extensive collection of statistics from Ponzi schemes during the six-year period from 2008 to 2013, and the results were staggering. Defaults against these defendants were entered on April 21, 2014. Contrary to his representations, Wannakuwatte used much of the money he obtained to pay himself and his family, make lulling payments to participants in his fraudulent investment schemes, and pay outstanding debts unrelated to his false representations. Wannakuwattes decadelong crime constitutes very possibly the largest Ponzi scheme in the regions history, Wagner said. Wannakuwatte, who turns 64 next week, has been in jail since February on charges of taking banks and individual investors for more than $100 million. Toronto police have also been unable to account for several million dollars, which they believe was diverted to an offshore bank account in Panama. 95814, Telephone:(916) 554-2700 - Check with a trusted financial adviser, broker, or attorney about any investments you are considering. Do your due diligence when thinking about investing your hard-earned money (see sidebar). He used investors money to pay the overstated tax returns. The functioning of a Ponzi scheme is inherently simple. Defendant is 69 years old and claims he is particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 because he suffers from multiple medical conditions, including serious lung disorders, a severely compromised immune system, hypertension, and gastrointestinal bleeding. Deepal Wannakuwatte and Betsy are not now, and never have been, members or owners of Sunfire. However, according to authorities, these claims were false. To the contrary, it appears USP Lompoc was capable of adequately monitoring and caring for Defendant when he was previously diagnosed with COVID-19. Court:UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA. /content/aba-cms-dotorg/en/groups/litigation/committees/criminal/practice/2015/sacramento-capitols-former-owner-ordered-to-pay-restitution-in-ponzi-scheme. Website: www.ismiledentalproducts.com Employees (this site): ? Wannakuwatte took over the Capitals in 2012 after previous owner Bob Cook filed for bankruptcy protection. Full title:UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff, v. DEEPAL WANNAKUWATTE, Defendant. ), No. Deepal Wannakuwatte took in more than $125 million over the past decade from investors who were financing contracts to supply gloves to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, according to an FBI . 3582(c)(1)(A) and U.S.S.G. After his arrest, the World TeamTennis league revoked his franchise and disbanded the team. 3582(C)(1)(A)(i). 501 I Street, Suite 10-100 And he did a have contract with the VA, but it was only for up to $25,000 a year. Former Sacramento Capitals World TeamTennis owner Deepal Wannakuwatte was sentenced Thursday in federal court in Sacramento to 20 years in prison for his long-running fraud. . Wannakuwatte has been in custody since his arrest on February 21, 2014. For more than decade, up until February 2014, Sacramento businessman (and Ponzi scammer extraordinaire) Deepal Wannakuwatte fooled his investors and his lenders into believing that he and his. The victims will never be whole again from the fraud totaling more than $230 million, but rest assured they will have the comfort of knowing Wannakuwatte will be incarcerated for many years to come. This included schemes from nearly every U.S. state only eight states did not record a hit on our database. Follow him on Twitter @dakasler. You are a liar, a serial liar. The sentence imposed today is tantamount to a life sentence, although no amount of prison time will undo the harm he caused to so many victims. A New York man was accused of using his position as head of a soccer club to dupe investors out of more than $5 million in a Ponzi scheme that purportedly financed the sale of cigarettes to a Native American Indian reservation. Wannakuwatte ran a Ponzi scheme in California through his company, International Manufacturing Groupone where money from new investors goes to interest payments from older investorsfor nearly a decade before the scam imploded in 2014. {{currentYear}} American Bar Association, all rights reserved. Madoffs Jewish heritage attracted a large amount of Jewish investors, and his stature in the financial industry was enough for numerous charitable and educational foundations to entrust their money to him. by 2Paragraphs in Culture | August 17, 2016, Deepal Wannakuwatte, American Greed (CNBC). Ironically, Steven Palladino was also accused of using investor funds to make court-ordered payments stemming from a previous conviction for defrauding an elderly relative. Experts said it would have been difficult for Wannakuwatte to withdraw his guilty plea, and his new lawyer, Cozens, announced to the court in September that his client was ready to be sentenced. Wannakuwatte will be sentenced July 24 by U.S. District Judge Troy Nunley. Instead, Rocco was accused of operating a Ponzi scheme that used investor funds to pay returns. 80.) This ruling concludes the federal criminal prosecution; civil proceedings in the United States Bankruptcy Court are ongoing. Neither agreed to talk to The Bee afterward. . American Bar Association Modelled Revenue: # Although the government has initiated proceedings to seize his home in South Land Park, vacation properties in Hawaii and on the Oregon coast, and other assets, its considered unlikely that victims will receive more than pennies on the dollar. Deepal Wannakuwatte - 1 Criminal record(s) found. This case was the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Inspector General, Office of Investigations. Deepal Wannakuwatte, the former owner of the now-defunct Sacramento Capitals professional tennis team, was sentenced to 20 years in prison Thursday for perpetrating one of the costliest Ponzi schemes in the regions history. FBI.gov is an official site of the U.S. Department of Justice. But as of the date of this Order, the BOP reports only eight active inmate cases of COVID-19 and 163 recovered inmates at USP Lompoc. The total losses to investor victims exceeds $100 million. The total value of the properties, vehicles, business interests, and bank accounts is estimated to be at least $3.5 million. Based on the false representations, Bridge Bank authorized a line of credit worth $4.5 million. However, in August 2012, the Securities and Exchange Commission initiated an emergency civil enforcement action and accused ZeekRewards and its founder, Paul Burks, of masterminding a massive Ponzi scheme that was on the verge of collapse. One of the ways investors were solicited to invest with JCS Enterprises was through the placement of videos on YouTube. Have a question about Government Services? 135.) They all painted a picture of a man who preyed on mostly elderly investors and duped many of them out of their retirement savings. - Dont believe everything youre told. However, Persauds trading strategy of relying on lunar cycles to make trades was not only undisclosed to investors, but also generated more than $400,000 in losses. Wannakuwatte ran a Ponzi scheme in California through his company, International Manufacturing Groupone where money from new investors goes to interest payments from older investorsfor nearly a decade before the scam imploded in 2014. In California, a former tennis team owner was arrested earlier this year and charged with defrauding investors out of at least $125 million through his medical equipment businesses, International Manufacturing Group (IMG) and RelyAid. The exposure was gigantic, Heller said. ), Generally, a court "may not modify a term of imprisonment once it has been imposed." An investigation began after a tip from an investor in 2013 and involved a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of the Inspector General. In an unusual turn, when it was revealed that at least 100,000 emus were abandoned and left to starve, the Indian government was forced to step in and purchase $200,000 in emergency rations to feed the emus. . Defendant made a request to the warden on April 23, 2020. The conference call was made to verify the authenticity of the $25 million accounts receivable ledger provided by Wannakuwatte. The Sentencing Commission's relevant policy statement on compassionate release identifies medical conditions that satisfy the "extraordinary and compelling" requirement. What Is the Kenvue IPO Price Range? Nasdaq Assistant United States Attorneys Michael Beckwith and Kevin Khasigian are prosecuting the case. In order to establish his financial credibility, Wannakuwatte showed investors his personal and corporate tax returns where he actually reported and paid taxes that falsely overstated his annual personal income and the annual gross receipts and sales for IMG. Although Defendant claims to suffer from multiple, serious medical conditions, he fails to submit any medical documentation to confirm that he actually suffers from those conditions. For more than decade, up until February 2014, Sacramento businessman (and Ponzi scammer extraordinaire) Deepal Wannakuwatte fooled his investors and his lenders into believing that he and his companies were worthy of their trust and their money. In addition to fulfilling their divine duties, Mr. Hibbert told parishioners he could generate monthly returns of up to 8.5% through his skills as a foreign currency trader. Betsy Wannakuwatte, the wife of Deepal Wannakuwatte, was served by personal service on the same date. The Sacramento, California businessman operated a $230 million medical glove Ponzi scheme. Lock But he walked into court that day and announced that hed fired his original lawyer, Donald Heller, claiming that Heller had coerced him into pleading guilty. In order to establish his financial credibility, Wannakuwatte showed investors his personal and corporate tax returns where he actually reported and paid taxes that falsely overstated his annual personal income and the annual gross receipts and sales for IMG. Deepal Wannakuwatte, 63, was arrested in February 2014 and indicted on federal fraud charges, including mail fraud and wire fraud, which each carry maximum 20-year prison terms. Ponzi schemes have seemingly endless variations, which has led to this list of newsworthy Ponzi schemes, ranging from a emu-raising Ponzi scheme to astrology to latex gloves. 1B1.13. Even after the trio accepted guilty pleas from state prosecutors, Steven Palladino recently landed in more trouble when federal prosecutors indicted him on 25 charges of criminal contempt. Wannakuwatte claimed he had already paid back some of the victims, but the court determined that he had not met his burden of showing this to the court. Hes owed the refunds, ironically, because he deliberately overpaid his taxes in order to lull his victims into complacency by showing them IRS returns with vastly inflated incomes. After the arrest, the franchise was disbanded by World TeamTennis. Losses incurred by the victim financial institutions often threatened their financial stability and reputations. Have a question about Government Services? And while his victims suffered, Wannakuwatte purchased luxury homes, vehicles, airplanes, and even a professional tennis team. Cal. You are a liar, a serial liar. Next: Online Auction Revealed to Be $500 Million Ponzi Scheme. We thank the IRS Criminal Investigation and FDIC Office of Inspector General for their partnership throughout this investigation. However, there were very few legitimate loans, and the Palladinos paid the advertised interest by simply using funds from new investors. See 18 U.S.C. SACRAMENTO, Calif. Deepal Wannakuwatte, 63, of Sacramento, was sentenced today to 20 years in prison for a long-running fraud scheme, announced United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner, Special Agent in Charge Monica M. Miller of the FBI's Sacramento Field Office, Acting Special Agent in Charge Thomas McMahon for the IRS-Criminal On Thursday, a federal judge ordered Deepal Wannakuwatte, 64, of Sacramento, to pay $108,199,425 in restitution to victims of his long-running fraud scheme, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today. In addition to the prison term, United States District Judge Troy L. Nunley ordered Wannakuwatte to forfeit multiple properties, vehicles, business interests, and bank accounts to be used to provide restitution to victims. Dressed in a grubby jail-issued orange jumpsuit, Wannakuwatte, 63, pleaded guilty Thursday to a single count of wire fraud in U.S. District Court. According to the indictment, beginning in September 2011, Wannakuwatte sought a line of credit from Bridge Bank. We are pleased to have played a part in bringing Mr. Wannakuwatte to justice and value our cooperative working relationships with the U.S. Attorneys Office, FBI, and IRS-CI.. 95814, Telephone:(916) 554-2700 Sacramento, CA. Deepal Wannakuwatte, the former owner of the now-defunct Sacramento Capitals professional tennis team, was sentenced to 20 years in prison Thursday for perpetrating one of the costliest Ponzi. U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of California, Domestic Violence, Child Exploitation, and Human Trafficking Prevention, Former Owner Of Sacramento Capitals Tennis Team Sentenced To 20 Years In Prison For Fraud Scheme Exceeding $100Million In Losses, Mexican National Residing in Bakersfield Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Illegal Cockfighting in Violation of the Animal Welfare Act, Laser Strikes on Kern County Sheriff Helicopter Lead to Prison Sentence, Federal Agent Pleads Guilty to Making False Statements in Connection with a Sexual Relationship with a Victim Witness. Even when excluding the three largest Ponzi schemes, the average scheme size was still $43.3 million. This story was originally published May 8, 2014, 12:11 PM. 3582(c)(1)(A) sets forth a rare exception to the general rule. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. However, while IMG and RelyAid did have a business relationship with the USVA, authorities alleged that this relationship was grossly overstated. In fact, while he did have a contract with the VA, it was only worth up to $25,000 a year. Show Crime Records Powered by. Wannakuwatte offered his investors several different bogus high-yield investment opportunities, most of which related to his purported relationship with the VA. And to prove his bona fides to potential investors and to lenders he was trying to borrow money from, he showed them phony corporate documents as well as actual personal and corporate tax returns where he had reported and paid taxes that falsely overstated his personal income and annual gross receipts and sales for IMG. Although prosecutors have said Wannakuwatte lured investors and lenders into giving him around $150 million, Wagner pegged the actual net loss at around $100 million. Get FBI email alerts Horacio Ortega-Martinez, 36, a citizen of Mexico residing in Bakersfield, was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for possessing roosters for the purpose of using them in an animal A Bakersfield man was sentenced today to an additional month in prison to be followed by 11 months home detention and 36 months of supervised release for knowingly aiming the Federal agent pleaded guilty Wednesday to one count of making a false statement in connection with a sexual relationship she had with a victim witness in a separate federal criminal Sacramento Main Office
How To Avoid Filial Responsibility,
Crossings Funeral Home Steinbach Obituaries,
Leah Name Puns,
Youngest To 3,000 Strikeouts,
Purvis Lines Larkhill,
Articles D
