Cases by state
Ponzi schemes in Georgia
27 cases announced 2001–2026, involving about $1.4B in reported investor money. Most common types: investment funds & advisory, real estate and trading, forex & commodities. Listed by where the main defendant was based.
The largest by reported amount: Drive Planning LLC ($300M, 2024). Charges are allegations unless a court has entered a conviction or judgment.
Pitch phrases seen in these cases
- “25% monthly return”
- “building and loan”
- “daily profits of $120 and annual returns of $43,800 on a $10,000 investment”
- “10% interest every 3 months”
- “to generate high returns”
- “safe investments that would yield high rates of return”
- “secured by the protection of collateral and personal guarantees”
- “instant deposit credit”
Cases
| Date | Case | Location | Industry | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 17, 2026 | The Crypto Program Edward Zimbardi |
Flowery Branch, GA | Crypto & digital assets | $165M |
| Jul 10, 2025 | First Liberty Building & Loan LLC Edwin Brant Frost IV |
Newnan, GA | Lending & cash advance | $140M |
| Dec 18, 2024 | Trage Technologies Limited Graeme Gary Hearn, Michael Holloway, Eric Ture Muhammad |
Fairburn, GA | Crypto & digital assets | $79M |
| Aug 14, 2024 | Drive Planning LLC Russell Todd Burkhalter, Gerardo Linarducci, David Bradford |
Atlanta, GA | Real estate | $300M |
| Jul 26, 2024 | Borg Investment Bank & Capital Trust Roosevelt Tobias Bailey, Alvin C. Jones |
Buford, GA | Investment funds & advisory | $1.6M |
| Apr 12, 2023 | Christopher Burns | Berkeley Lake, GA | Lending & cash advance | $10M |
| Nov 1, 2022 | Syed Arham Arbab, Tomas Javier Jimenez, Blake Douglas McKinney, Mushfiqur Rahman, John Ryan Shows, William Carl Spagnoli | Athens, GA | Trading, forex & commodities | $2M |
| Aug 25, 2021 | John Woods | Marietta, GA | Investment funds & advisory | $110M |
| Jul 30, 2020 | Allied Energy Services LLC Clarence Dean Alford |
GA | Investment funds & advisory | $23M |
| Jun 24, 2020 | Flame Trucking Maurice Fayne (aka Arkansas Mo) |
Dacula, GA | Trucking & transport | $5M |
| Jan 27, 2020 | Christopher Parris | Atlanta, GA | Investment funds & advisory | $115.5M |
| Jul 18, 2016 | Thomas D. Conrad Jr., Stuart P. Conrad | Alpharetta, GA | Trading, forex & commodities | $10.7M |
| Dec 1, 2015 | James A. Torchia | Canton, GA | Legal & litigation funding | $30M |
| Apr 13, 2015 | DollarMonster, Cashflowbot.com James A. Evans Jr. |
Villa Rica, GA | Investment funds & advisory | $1.1M |
| Apr 3, 2015 | Millennium Capital Exchange Inc. Stafford S. Maxwell |
Mableton, GA | Trading, forex & commodities | $1M |
| Sep 19, 2012 | Angelo A. Alleca | Atlanta, GA | Investment funds & advisory | $17M |
| Aug 16, 2012 | GLC Limited Jim Donnan, Gregory Crabtree |
Athens, GA | Investment funds & advisory | $80M |
| Jul 2, 2012 | PFG LLC, PFGBI LLC Aubrey Lee Price |
Valdosta, GA | Real estate | $40M |
| Jul 5, 2011 | Le Sin Charles M. Vaughn |
Atlanta, GA | Investment funds & advisory | $10M |
| Aug 30, 2010 | Weston Rutledge Financial Services Inc Geoffrey A. Gish, Myra J. Ettenborough |
Marietta, GA | Trading, forex & commodities | $29M |
| Nov 5, 2009 | Edward William Farley | Hoschton, GA | Real estate | $20M |
| Apr 9, 2009 | Robert P. Copeland | Marietta, GA | Real estate | $35M |
| Mar 23, 2009 | Wendell Ray Spell | Gainesville, GA | Investment funds & advisory | $60M |
| Mar 18, 2009 | CRE Capital Inc James G. Ossie |
Atlanta, GA | Trading, forex & commodities | $25M |
| Jul 24, 2007 | New Millenium Enterpreneurs LLC, Phoenixsurf.com Jonathan W. Mikula, Gabriel J. Frankewich |
Athens, GA | Investment funds & advisory | $41.9M |
| Oct 11, 2006 | Pinnacle Development Partners LLC Gene A. O'Neal |
Atlanta, GA | Real estate | $30M |
| Mar 9, 2001 | Global Telelink Services Inc., Global Contact Corporation Robert Smith III |
GA | Investment funds & advisory | $10M |