Charles Caleb Fackrell, 37, of Booneville, N.C., is going to prison for running a $1.4 million Ponzi scheme that preyed on at least 20 investors across Wilkes County and beyond. The convicted stockbroker was sentenced to 63 months in federal prison by U.S. District Judge Richard Voorhees today in Statesville, N.C. Fackrell must also serve three years of supervised release and pay $819,918 in restitution to his victims.
Fackrell pleaded guilty in April 2016 to one count of securities fraud. Since then, he’s been in federal custody, awaiting judgment. The scheme ran from May 2012 to December 2014, during which Fackrell used his credentials as a licensed stockbroker to lure investors into funneling money into sham entities he controlled—collectively known as “Robin Hood, LLC” and its affiliates. He pitched these as safe, gold-backed investments with guaranteed annual returns of 5% to 7%.
But none of it was true. Court documents reveal Fackrell spent only a fraction of investor funds on precious metals. Instead, he siphoned over $700,000—nearly half the total—to make fraudulent “interest” payments, keeping the scheme alive by robbing Peter to pay Paul. The rest went to his personal expenses: hotels, groceries, medical bills, and shopping sprees. He even made large cash withdrawals while telling victims their money was locked into secure assets.
To cover his tracks, Fackrell tried to destroy evidence. He asked a third party to wipe a computer and toss documents tied to the scam, admitting he was under investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. That move only deepened the federal case against him. The FBI, Charlotte Division, and the North Carolina Secretary of State’s Office helped unravel the web of lies.
“Fackrell is a scammer,” said U.S. Attorney Jill Westmoreland Rose, who prosecuted the case. “He betrayed his victims who believed his sales pitch and trusted him with their hard-earned money. He used it to enrich himself and perpetuate his fraud. His dishonesty caused a lot of financial hardship to a lot of people, and for that, he will serve a well-deserved prison sentence.”
North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine F. Marshall called the crime “one of the most vicious financial crimes we have seen in North Carolina in many years.” She emphasized the cruelty of Fackrell’s betrayal: a registered stockbroker using the name ‘Robin Hood’—a symbol of redistributing wealth—to run a scheme that stole from the vulnerable. “His punishment today is well deserved,” she said. All federal sentences are served without the possibility of parole.
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Key Facts
- State: North Carolina
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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