Two men have been busted for allegedly running a massive $80 million Ponzi scheme that involved fake investments in ATM machines, federal prosecutors in Manhattan announced today.
Vance Moore, 55, of Raleigh, N.C., and Walter Netschi, 62, of McKinney, Texas, have been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and nine counts of wire fraud, authorities said.
"Vance Moore II and Walter Netschi used false promises and fake returns to steal tens of millions of dollars from their victims. We will continue to use the full resources of our office to expose the perpetrators and vindicate the victims of complex financial frauds," said Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara.
Both men are expected to appear before and enter a plea before a judge in Manhattan federal court.
If convicted of aqll counts, the men face up to 20 years behind bars.
The feds allege that Moore and Netschi solicited more than $80 million in ATM machines that they represented to investors.
The US Attorney's office said an estimated 90 percent of the machines the men claimed they purchased either didn't exist or weren't owned by the men. The feds said Moore and Netschi also sent their investors fake invoices that listed profits, which was nothing more than money they had collected from new investors.
