Monday, November 16, 2009

"Green" Ponzi Scheme Uncovered

The plethora of Ponzi schemes uncovered in the wake of Stanford and Madoff may be joined by a similar scheme with a new twist: green investment fraud. If the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is correct, four individuals and two companies based out of Colorado and Pennsylvania defrauded mainly elderly investors out of $30 million through a purportedly green investment opportunity.

The SEC has charged Wayde and Donna McKelvy, through their Denver-based company Speed of Wealth LLC in conjunction with two Mantria Corporation executives, Troy Wragg and Amanda Knorr, with orchestrating the Ponzi scheme. The four allegedly targeted those in and approaching retirement to invest as much as possible into Mantria Corporation. They marketed seminars and, “webinars,” through radio, television, internet, and print. At these meetings conducted by Speed of Wealth, would be investors were advised into liquidating retirement accounts, savings accounts, mutual funds, stocks, bonds, and other traditional investments in order to invest in Mantria offerings.

In addition to the serious questions such advice elicits, promises were apparently made in seminars promising annualized returns of 17% to “hundreds of percent (sic).” Unfortunately for investors, these claims were patently false. In fact, almost no money was generated with funds collected from investors, and the McKelvys collected a generous and undisclosed 12% commission. As is emblematic of ponzi schemes, new investor funds were used to compensate old investors.

Each defendant has been charged with violating offering registration and anti-fraud provisions of securities laws.

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