Eliyahu Weinstein, Multi-Million-Dollar Ponzi Scheme, New Jersey 2025

A New Jersey man, Eliyahu Weinstein, 50, was sentenced to 37 years in prison for his role in a Ponzi-like fraud scheme that resulted in investor losses of more than $44 million, as well as other offenses. His co-conspirator, Aryeh Bromberg, 51, received a 12-year prison sentence. Both were ordered to pay more than $44 million in restitution to the victims of their scheme.

The scheme was orchestrated by Weinstein, who used the alias 'Mike Konig' to secretly run a company called Optimus Investments Inc. (Optimus). He and his co-conspirators received the bulk of investor money through a second company, Tryon Management Group LLC (Tryon), which promised investors lucrative opportunities to invest in deals involving COVID-19 masks and test kits, scarce baby formula, and first-aid kits supposedly bound for wartime Ukraine.

Weinstein was previously convicted twice of defrauding investors of more than $230 million in New Jersey federal court. His first case involved a real estate Ponzi scheme, and his second case stemmed from an additional fraud he committed while on pretrial release. On January 19, 2021, Weinstein began serving a term of supervised release stemming from his prior convictions.

However, soon after being released from prison, Weinstein began orchestrating a new scheme to solicit money from investors. He and his co-conspirators kept his true name and identity hidden, as he acknowledged in a secretly recorded conversation, investors wouldn't give them 'a penny' if they learned of Weinstein's involvement.

Weinstein, Bromberg, and their co-conspirators were convicted of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, securities fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, three counts of wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, transacting in criminal proceeds, conspiracy to make false statements to the U.S. Probation Office, conspiracy to obstruct justice, and obstruction of justice. Weinstein was also convicted of four counts of making false statements to the United States Probation Office.

Five of Weinstein and Bromberg's conspirators, Christopher Anderson, 49, Richard Curry, 39, Shlomo Erez, 57, Alaa Hattab, 37, and Joel Wittels, 59, previously pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the same scheme and are awaiting sentencing.

The scheme was exposed in late August 2022, when Hattab revealed Weinstein's true identity to Anderson and Curry. In a series of subsequent meetings, which were recorded, Weinstein admitted to misappropriating investor money and making various false statements and sending fake documents concerning the purported deals.

The sentencing took place on November 14, 2025. Eliyahu Weinstein, aka 'Mike Konig,' was sentenced to 37 years in prison, and Aryeh Bromberg was sentenced to 12 years in prison. Both were ordered to pay more than $44 million in restitution to the victims of their scheme.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-nj/pr/convicted-ponzi-schemer-and-co-conspirator-sentenced-37-years-and-12-years-44-million