Hunter Haithcock, Investment Adviser Fraud, Maryland 2023

Hunter Haithcock, 24, a man from Matthews, North Carolina, has pleaded guilty to wire fraud and investment adviser fraud charges in connection with a scheme that stole at least $650,000 from 64 investors in Maryland.

Haithcock, who used the alias Hunter Elliott, posed as an investment adviser and promised his victims significant returns on their investments. Instead, he stole their funds and used them for his own purposes, including paying off credit card bills and traveling.

According to the plea agreement, Haithcock stole at least $657,138.93 from his victims between September 2019 and October 2022. He provided them with fabricated reports to make it seem like their investments were performing well, but in reality, he was using the funds for his own benefit.

Haithcock met his victims through a local church and by word-of-mouth referrals. He promised them that their investment principal was protected from loss, regardless of the risk of the performance of the market and the size of their initial investment.

Haithcock's scheme began to unravel when his victims began to ask for the return of their funds. He fabricated reasons why he couldn't return their money and eventually stopped communicating with them.

Haithcock faces a maximum of 20 years in federal prison for the wire fraud offense and five years for the investment adviser fraud offense. His sentencing is scheduled for February 6, 2023.

U.S. Attorney Kelly O. Hayes commended the FBI for its work in the investigation and praised the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Cecil County Sherriff's Office, and the Office of the Attorney General for the State of Maryland for their assistance.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-md/pr/north-carolina-man-who-posed-investment-adviser-pleads-guilty-connection-investment-fund