BOSTON — A Minnesota attorney has been locked up for his role in a brazen international securities fraud scheme that slithered through markets for five years, aiming to siphon $15 million from unsuspecting investors. Milan Patel, 50, was sentenced yesterday in federal court to 15 months in prison and slapped with a $50,000 fine by U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton.
Patel, once trusted to uphold the law, instead weaponized his legal expertise in a sprawling conspiracy stretching from Boston to offshore accounts. Between 2013 and 2018, he teamed up with Morrie Tobin, Matthew Ledvina, and Roger Knox to hide their control of microcap stocks, then used paid hype campaigns and rigged trading to inflate prices. Once the stocks were pumped, the insiders dumped their shares—leaving ordinary investors holding the bag.
Working hand-in-glove with Ledvina, Patel helped Tobin build shell companies designed to cloak his ownership. These phony fronts allowed Tobin to quietly unload millions in stock at artificially inflated prices. The scheme reeked of corruption, exploiting loopholes and the blind trust of small-time traders lured by sudden spikes in obscure equities.
Tobin, the alleged ringleader, pleaded guilty in February 2019 and was sentenced the same day as Patel to one year and one day in prison, fined $100,000, and forced to forfeit $4 million. Matthew Ledvina, another key architect, dodged prison in June 2020 with 30 months of probation and a $50,000 fine. Roger Knox, who also admitted guilt, awaits his fate with sentencing set for September 30, 2020.
The takedown was spearheaded by United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling and Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Boston Field Division. The SEC’s Boston regional office played a critical role in unraveling the financial maze, tracking shell entities and suspicious trading patterns that exposed the fraud.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eric S. Rosen and James R. Drabick, both from Lelling’s Securities, Financial and Cyber Fraud Unit, prosecuted the case with relentless focus. The convictions send a message: even crimes committed in boardrooms and backroom deals won’t escape federal justice.
RELATED: Morrie Tobin Sentenced in $15M Securities Fraud Scheme
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Key Facts
- State: Massachusetts
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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