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$155M Investment Fraud Scheme Crumbles
BROOKLYN, NY – An indictment was unsealed yesterday in federal court in Brooklyn charging three former operators of financial services firm Biscayne Capital with conspiring to defraud investors and financial institutions in an international fraud scheme that caused more than $155 million in investor losses.
Roberto Gustavo Cortes Ripalda (“Cortes”), Fernando Haberer Bergson (“Haberer”) and Ernesto Heraclito Weisson Pazmino (“Weisson”) are charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, bank fraud and money laundering. Weisson was arrested yesterday in Florida, made his initial appearance yesterday afternoon in federal court in Miami and was ordered held pending a detention hearing. Cortes and Haberer were arrested yesterday in Spain and Argentina, respectively.
“As alleged, the defendants orchestrated a complex and fraudulent scheme to repeatedly mislead investors about the nature and performance of their investments. The defendants enriched themselves with millions of dollars in investor funds while making misrepresentations that caused more than $155 million in investor losses,” stated Jacquelyn M. Kasulis, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.
“The charges demonstrate this Office’s commitment to ensuring integrity in the management of investor funds and prosecuting those who commit fraud to enrich themselves at their investors’ expense.” Ms. Kasulis also expressed her appreciation to the IRS-CI Boston Field Office for their assistance with the case.
According to the indictment, Biscayne Capital was a financial services company founded in approximately 2005 and maintained offices in Florida, Ecuador, Argentina, the Bahamas and Uruguay. Between approximately 2013 and 2018, Cortes, Haberer and Weisson, together with others, orchestrated a scheme to defraud Biscayne Capital clients and financial institutions through a series of material misrepresentations and omissions about how Biscayne Capital client funds would be used.
The indictment further alleges that the defendants and their co-conspirators used the funds they fraudulently obtained from clients and financial institutions to pay other investors, cover Biscayne Capital expenses and pay themselves millions of dollars.
Jacquelyn M. Kasulis, Kenneth A. Polite Jr., Darrell J. Waldon, and Raymond Villanueva announced the arrests and charges.
“Financial schemes like the one alleged here not only damage the lives of those victimized by the fraud, but the international money laundering involved poses a direct threat to the security of the U.S. financial system,” stated HSI Special Agent-in-Charge Villanueva.
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes|White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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