Terina K. Carney, $415,000 Investment Fraud Scheme, Missouri 2015

A Lebanon woman has pleaded guilty to running a Ponzi scheme that cost investors over $415,000, federal authorities announced today.

Terina K. Carney, 49, of Lebanon, waived her right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge David P. Rush to a federal information that charges her with wire fraud, money laundering, and failure to file a tax return.

The scheme, which ran from December 2012 to January 2015, involved Carney telling investors that their money would be used as an advance payment on behalf of a third-party business, allowing the business to continue operating while it secured long-term funding from a bank.

Carney promised investors a high rate of return, from 10 percent to 30 percent on top of their original investment. However, investigators found that the money was never used to provide short-term financing for any other business. Instead, Carney used it to pay other investors or cover her own personal expenses.

Carney also admitted to depositing $520,119 from victim investors during 2012, 2013, and 2014, but failing to file federal income tax returns for any of those years.

Under federal statutes, Carney is subject to a sentence of up to 31 years in federal prison without parole, plus a fine of up to $525,000. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after the completion of a presentence investigation by the United States Probation Office.

The case was investigated by the FBI, IRS-Criminal Investigation, and the Missouri Secretary of State’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney.

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