Christopher Lloyd Burnell, Investment Fraud, California 2023
Highland Man Sentenced to 14 Years in Prison for Multimillion-Dollar Investment Fraud Scheme
A Highland man who used his work history as a San Bernardino County sheriff’s deputy to gain investors’ trust and later invest millions of dollars with him, only to use their money to fund his extravagant lifestyle, was sentenced today to 168 months in federal prison. Christopher Lloyd Burnell, 51, was sentenced by United States District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald, who also ordered him to pay $7,592,491 in restitution.
Burnell pleaded guilty on May 10 to 11 counts of wire fraud and two counts of filing a false tax return. The scheme began no later than November 2010 and continued until September 2017.
Burnell falsely claimed to have accumulated tens of millions of dollars from lawsuits he purportedly won against the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department and Kaiser Permanente; from selling a patent for an air-cooled, bullet-resistant vest to Oakley Inc.; and through investments in small businesses and money-lending opportunities. He left the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department in May 2008.
“But these investment opportunities did not actually exist,” prosecutors argued in a sentencing memorandum. “Rather, [Burnell] would spend the money on maintaining a life of luxury for himself and his Hooters calendar model girlfriends, gambling, and private jets.”
Burnell spent victims’ money on gambling and luxury items, including losing more than $2 million in gambling at the San Manuel Casino in Highland, $500,000 in private jet trips, $70,000 on Louis Vuitton merchandise, and $175,000 on luxury cars and an apartment lease for his then-girlfriends.
As victims began to raise concerns to him about a lack of repayment and defaults, Burnell claimed that his money had been tied up in a trust fund and his remaining assets had been seized by federal authorities. He then cheated some of the victims out of additional funds by falsely claiming he needed loans to pay for his then-wife’s cancer treatment, a child custody dispute with his father-in-law, and other personal expenses.
Burnell’s victims lost a total of $7,592,491, which included their retirement and other savings and investment funds. According to court documents, some victims became depressed and suicidal, others lost their businesses, some were forced to sell their family homes and move into smaller residences, some had to tell their children they could no longer pay for their college education, and some suffered marital problems and got divorced.
Judge Fitzgerald described Burnell as “one of the most evil people that I have ever dealt with in the law” and ordered him immediately remanded into custody. The total restitution ordered is $7,592,491.
Defendant: Christopher Lloyd Burnell
Criminal Charges: 11 counts of wire fraud, two counts of filing a false tax return
City and State: Highland, California
Exact Date: May 10, 2023
Sentence: 168 months in federal prison
Dollar Amounts: $7,592,491 in restitution
Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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