Investment always involves risk, so if you invest in a project and it never becomes profitable, it usually makes you look like a bad sport if you immediately start pointing fingers at your former business partners. Despite this, the financial sector has rules about transparency so that investors can make informed choices before they spend their money. Losing money because a business venture did not turn out the way its founders had planned is one thing, but lying to people to persuade them to invest in a venture that never had a chance or a project that never existed is quite another. Investment fraud is one of the most common types of fraud. Of all the lies that can cause people to hand over their money, lies that involve the promise of future financial prosperity are among the most effective.
If you are facing charges for fraud because former business partners or investors allege that your natural entrepreneurial bluster crossed over into the domain of lies, contact a Texas white-collar crime lawyer.
Prosecutors Accuse Serial Entrepreneur of Defrauding Investors and Government Agencies
A Texas businessman is facing criminal charges for investment fraud and money laundering. He established a series of businesses between 2012 and 2021. Most of them involved sports management. People who knew him believed that he was a manager of professional and semiprofessional athletes, and he easily convinced them to invest in his ventures to manage professional athletes and create new sports leagues. Investors transferred money to him to provide capital for the ventures; the criminal complaint identifies at least three investors by their initials, and their investments in the various ventures range from $5,000 to $100,000. All of the business entities established by the defendant and allegedly connected to the criminal activities had the limited liability company (LLC) business structure. This business structure often draws scrutiny from investigators because the regulations surrounding it leave it vulnerable to financial crime.
The defendant is also accused of defrauding government agencies. During the COVID-19 pandemic, he applied for COVID relief loans such as the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL); these were programs that the Small Business Administration offered to small businesses to prevent job losses and defaults on business loans during the pandemic. Prosecutors allege that the defendant used the money he got from these loans for personal expenses since the businesses did not operate as he claimed they did.
He is also facing charges of money laundering because of transfers he made between his personal and business accounts. Prosecutors allege that the defendant made these transactions with the intent of making it more difficult to trace what he did with the money he received from the investors and the government programs.
Contact the Law Office of Patrick J. McLain, PLLC About Criminal Defense Cases
A Dallas criminal defense lawyer can help you fight your charges if you are facing criminal charges for illegal business schemes. Contact the Law Office of Patrick J. McLain, PLLC, in Dallas, Texas, to discuss your case.