A film director and another defendant have been accused of committing 72 counts of white collar crimes. The crimes allegedly involve more than 140 so-called investors who claimed that the defendants encouraged them to invest their life savings, or home equity, in a Ponzi scheme that transpired from 2007 to 2010.
The accused director has entered a plea of not guilty and is expected to raise defenses against the charges.
Charges Filed
The accused is facing 56 counts of securities fraud, 15 counts of sale of unregistered securities, and 1 count of a device or scheme to defraud a securities transaction.
The complainants allege that the accused persuaded them to buy unqualified, non-exempt securities to help raise money for the 2009 film production of “Not Forgotten.” In exchange, they claimed that the film director allegedly promised them double-digit returns on their investments. They also stated that the two accused allegedly took money from new investors to pay prior investors, themselves, and their employees.
Some of the complainants allege that they invested as much as $395,000, while the total investments allegedly placed with the accused are estimated a $21.5 million.
If convicted, the accused may face a penalty of over 75 years of imprisonment.
Anyone accused of white collar crimes, as in this case, enjoys the constitutional presumption of innocence until guilt is proven beyond a reasonable doubt. They are also entitled to raise all criminal defenses that are available in their situation.
California White Collar Crimes
White collar crimes cover a wide range of offenses ranging from simple embezzlement of small company funds through to larger and more complex Ponzi schemes.
Anyone charged with a white collar crime should not enter a plea of guilty without having a qualified criminal defense attorney examine all the evidence against them. An evaluation of a white collar crime charge involves hours of interviews with multiple witnesses and examination of voluminous records often reaching several terabytes of information. Depending on the circumstances of your case, errors in findings of fact and conclusions of law may have been made in the investigation, and can be the bases of a strong criminal defense strategy.
California-based law firm of Gurovich, Berk & Associates have more than 35 years of combined experience in white collar crimes defenses, helping clients sort their legal issues and present strong criminal defense strategies for them.
Our firm is backed by a network of investigators and industry experts who may testify in support of your case. We invite you to call us today at (213) 385-1555 to schedule a free initial consultation with one of our attorneys.