MIAMI – Efrain Betancourt, Jr., 36, a dual citizen of Colombia and the United States, has been sentenced to 87 months in prison for orchestrating a massive payday loan fraud scheme that bilked over 600 investors out of more than $66 million. The sentence was handed down by U.S. District Judge Darrin P. Gayles on August 14.
Betancourt, the CEO and sole owner of Sky Group USA, LLC, a company posing as a payday loan business, used investor funds not for lending but to pay himself millions in commissions and fund a lavish wedding at a French chateau. The scheme lasted from January 2016 through March 2020.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) conducted a parallel proceeding against Betancourt, which concluded in July 2022. The SEC’s Miami Regional Office played a crucial role in the investigation.
U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Brett D. Skiles of FBI Miami, and Commissioner Russell C. Weigel, III, of the Florida Office of Financial Regulation (OFR) announced the sentencing. The case was investigated by FBI Miami, the FBI’s South Florida Fraud Task Force, and OFR. Assistant U.S. Attorney Roger Cruz prosecuted the case, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Gabrielle Raemy Charest-Turken handling asset forfeiture.
For more information on related court documents, visit the District Court for the Southern District of Florida website at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 24-cr-20399.
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Key Facts
- State: Florida
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Violent Crime|Sex Crimes|Cybercrime|Public Corruption|Weapons|Human Trafficking|White Collar Crime|Organized Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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