Husband and Wife Involved in Ponzi Scheme are Charged Almost $1 Billion by SEC
Jeffrey and Paulette Carpoff, out of California, were charged by the Securities and Exchange Commission(SEC) for organizing an almost billion-dollar Ponzi scheme including alternative energy tax credits. The couple raised an estimated amount of $910 million from seventeen investors, over the years of 2011-2018 as stated by the SEC’s complaint. Through the couple’s two solar generator investment companies(DC Solar Solutions Inc and DC Solar Distribution Inc), they were presenting securities in the form of investment contracts.
False promises were made by the Carpoff’s to investors of tax credits, lease payments and profits. However, these generators were not even manufactured and the income received by the investors came from funds from other investors. In addition to this, investors were be given false documents such as lease arrangements, financial statements, and generator certifications. The Carpoff’s used their investors money to live a luxurious life, where they owned over 150 sports cars and multiple properties.
The couple are being charged with violating anti-fraud supplying of the federal securities law, per the SEC’s complaint. Criminal charges from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California have been made public towards the Carpoff’s late last week.
See link for press release: https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2020-18
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