The Springboro, Ohio couple accused of running a Ponzi scheme will have their trial delayed until February 6, 2017.
Judge Thomas Rose of Dayton’s U.S. District Court granted an unopposed defense motion to continue William and Connie Apostelos’ trial because of the sheer volume of discovery. The husband and wife team from Ohio pleaded not guilty last year to allegations that they ran a Ponzi scheme that bilked investors out of $70 million.
Meyer Wilson also wrote about this case earlier last year, at which time the investment losses were only estimated to be around $30 million.
More than 200 discs full of discovery material are at play in this case, prompting Rose to grant more time before the case goes to trial. The assistant U.S. attorney also commented that the amount of discovery was “the biggest he’s seen in a decade on the job.”
Both William and Connie Apostelos have also filed motions to modify their home monitoring. Rose is expected to rule on that in a few days.
According to investigators, the Apostelos’ ran their Ponzi scheme for the five-year period between 2009 and 2014, picking up nearly 500 investors. Allegations assert that the couple solicited investors by claiming their money would be invested in various stocks and securities, but instead, the couple used customer money for their own purposes.
Ponzi schemes are a type of investment fraud involving the payment of “returns” to investors from funds contributed to the scheme by new investors. In many Ponzi scheme cases, there is little or no actual profit being made. The promises of high reward and little-to-no risk are common earmarks of a Ponzi scheme.
You can learn more about the latest in the Apostelos case by reading about it in Dayton Daily News, and for more information about Ponzi schemes, we encourage you to watch Attorney David Meyer’s helpful video on the subject.
