Four men—Arthur John Schlecht, Frederick Bart Gomer, Ricardo Jorge Padron, and Carlos Rodriguez—are facing federal charges for an alleged Ponzi scheme involving precious metals investments. According to the indictment, the four men allegedly ran the scheme through their companies, Global Bullion Trading Group, Capital Asset Management, and Certified, which all filed for bankruptcy after the scheme was believed to have collapsed.
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According to court documents, it is alleged that the four men told investors they could invest in silver, gold, platinum, and other precious metals and that the metals would be stored for the clients in depository vaults. Unfortunately, it is believed that the investors’ cash instead went toward the group’s personal and family expenses, including clothing, jewelry, household help, personal debt, luxury homes, furniture, landscaping, vehicles, travel, dining, and more. Court documents state that the men are accused of diverting investor funds to Schlecht, Schlecht’s family, and others.
No information was immediately available regarding the number of investors affected by the alleged precious metals investment fraud.
The FBI arrested Schlecht, 53, of Boone, NC, on Thursday, August 9. Gomer, Padron, and Rodriguez are expected to appear in court later this month.
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