James Cleary, Wire Fraud, Florida 2021

State: Florida
Category: Fraud &#038; Financial Crimes
Source: <a href="https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl/pr/palm-beach-resident-pleads-guilty-conspiracy-commit-wire-fraud" style="color:#cc0000;" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">DOJ Press Release ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Â Ã¢â‚¬â€

A Palm Beach County resident has admitted to participating in a complex wire fraud scheme that bilked investors out of over $393,500.

James Cleary, 50, pleaded guilty on Friday, August 6 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in a hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart in West Palm Beach. The scheme, which ran from 2015 to 2019, targeted investors with false promises about the profitability of NIT Enterprises, a Palm Beach company that falsely marketed itself as being on the cusp of developing and producing radiation protective materials.

Cleary, who was not a licensed securities sales agent, lied to investors by telling them that NIT was on the verge of making an initial public offering of stock, creating a false expectation that investors would double or triple their investments in a short amount of time. In reality, there was no IPO on the horizon for NIT.

Cleary admitted to using cold calls to reach most of his victims and personally profiting from the investor funds. His actions have left a trail of financial devastation, with investors losing a total of $393,500.

Cleary faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon will sentence Cleary on a date to be announced.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a parallel civil enforcement action against Cleary and others related to this activity. FBI Miami and the Florida Office of Financial Regulation (OFR) investigated the matter, with the SEC Miami Regional Office providing assistance.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Lothrop Morris is prosecuting the case. Those involved in the scheme are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Related court documents and information can be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case no. 20-cr-80095.

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