The United States has charged 10 individuals with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and aggravated identity theft in connection to an international impersonation fraud scheme.
In a joint operation by the US Department of Justice (DOJ); US Postal Inspection Service (USPIS); Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI); and the Homeland Security Investigations (HIS), they allege the group impersonated “prominent investment firms and individuals” to defraud investors around the world.
The people involved are:
- Nicholas Russell James Gillie (aka “James William Carter”);
- Neophytos Georgiou (aka “Nick”, “PT”, “The Boss”);
- Urs Meisterhans;
- Scott Steven Neilson;
- Liam James Smout (aka “Pringle”);
- Daniel Nielsen;
- Brenda Laverty;
- Andrew Georgiou (aka “Andy”);
- Thomas Andrew Kenny (aka “Irish”); and,
- Jake Mardell.
Nine of them are currently in custody.
US attorney Damian Williams said the defendants are believed to have carried out an international scheme that “fleeced investors out of more than $6m (£4.3m, €5m), in part by impersonating legitimate investment firms and fabricating the trappings of real investment opportunities, including news articles, advertisements, and other online content, as well as fake contracts and other documents”.
The four agencies added that, since 2015, the group of 10 participated in a “sophisticated international mass-marketing investment fraud scheme” targeted at English-speaking investors around the world.
International web
According to the DOJ, Neophytos Georgiou owns bars and restaurants in Cyprus and financed the costs of the fraudulent operation, which was orchestrated by Gillie, his longstanding partner in the Mediterranean island.
Meisterhans was the ‘banker’ of the scheme – the one in charge of laundering the money – the US agencies allege, as he channelled victims’ funds through bank accounts in the US and other countries.
The operation was orchestrated from ‘boiler rooms’ in Cyprus, Spain, Romania and Cambodia where, via a series of telemarketing calls and emails, the defendants convinced victims to transfer money to bank accounts under their control.
The investors were told their money would be invested in various firms to purchase company shares. But these firms were fake, and the promoted shares fraudulent. The money transferred by the victims was never returned.
Part of the scam included creating fake email addresses that appeared to be associated with the made-up firms and their investments to make it look as if they were employed by the real companies.
The funds were sent back to the group from individuals referred to as the ‘bankers’, who “were responsible for laundering the proceeds of the investment schemes”.
In some instances, the money was sent to accounts held in the names of individuals who actually do not exist, such as ‘James William Carter’ and ‘Jonathan Timothy Turner’. The bank accounts were opened in those names using fake UK passports and other documents.
The proceeds were then distributed among the 10, either as salary or commission.
One part of the scheme involved the impersonation of a New York-based private investment fund set up by an unnamed internationally renowned billionaire investor.
The group used the New York fund to defraud victims in Australia, Europe, and other parts of the world, by soliciting them to enter into various investments – including the purported purchase of ‘pre-IPO’ shares of a “successful and relatively young company that did not have its shares listed on a public stock exchange”.
Arrests
Gillie, Neophytos Georgiou, Laverty, Andrew Georgiou, and Mardell were all arrested in Cyprus in May 2021.
Smout was arrested in Spain in July 2021; Nielsen in Romania in June 2021; while Kenny and Neilson were apprehended in the UK in September and October 2021, respectively.
In September 2021, Nielsen was extradited to the US from Romania, and additional US extradition requests are still pending.
Meisterhans, a Swiss national, “remains at large”, the agencies said, and has been residing in Switzerland since May 2021 “as a fugitive from US justice”.
USPIS inspector-in-charge Philip Bartlett said: “International criminals have had a field day on US consumers and investors over the past few years. Whenever making an investment, it is strongly advised to dig deep and review everything you can find about the investment firm, managers, and purported returns.
“Use the power of the internet to search for negative information about the company. In this case, the victims relied on the good names of successful financial firms, only to later realise they had been swindled. Postal inspectors and their law enforcement partners will always be on the alert to alleged cons like these to maintain honest investment platforms and ensure those who allegedly commit crimes against investors are brought to justice.”
IRS-CI acting special agent in charge Thomas Fattorusso added: “This case demonstrates to the world that IRS-CI and our many law enforcement partners continue to uncover and expose fraud wherever it may be located.
“This alleged scheme took advantage of victims with the promise of valuable financial assets when in reality the funds are alleged to have been stolen and laundered back to the criminal conspirators.”
