On May 7, 2026, Christopher Knight Lopez was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas, Lopez and his brother operated a decade-long fraud that cost more than 40 investors approximately $17 million, including senior citizens and families who trusted the scheme with retirement savings and college funds.
If a licensed financial professional, broker, or advisor facilitated your investment in this matter, the experienced Ponzi scheme attorneys at Meyer Wilson Werning can help evaluate whether your losses are the result of actionable misconduct. Contact us today for a free and confidential consultation, and you pay nothing unless we recover for you.
How the $17 Million Fraud Operated
From May 2015 to January 2025, Christopher Knight Lopez and his brother Jayson Lopez ran an investment business out of Katy, Texas, and conspired with others to defraud clients using forged bank letters and fabricated account statements. The brothers operated under several LLCs, including Knight Nguyen Investments, Knight Advisory and Planning, Aevum Holdings Inc., Exempt Management LLC, and Ping An Financial Services Pte.
Client funds were misappropriated for personal use, and money from new investors was used to pay purported returns to earlier participants, the hallmark structure of a Ponzi scheme.
The Lopez brothers also admitted they falsely claimed access to $2 billion in U.S. Treasury bonds, telling clients they could use those funds to finance their businesses in exchange for large advance fees. The brothers collected the fees but never issued the loans.
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The Sentencing: What the Judge Said
On May 7, 2026, U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison sentenced Christopher Knight Lopez to 120 months in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. At the sentencing hearing, 13 investors gave statements describing the financial and personal damage the scheme caused to their lives and retirement plans.
In handing down the sentence, Judge Ellison noted he had never seen a white-collar crime more offensive during his time on the bench.
The scheme caused approximately $17 million in losses across more than 40 investors, including senior citizens and others who had invested retirement savings and college funds.
A co-conspirator, Nadir Abdel Torres of Mandan, North Dakota, also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud for his role in helping the brothers obtain forged letters and bank statements. Jayson Lopez, 43, of Orlando, Florida, also pleaded guilty to the same charge. The FBI conducted the investigation with assistance from the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Warning Signs of Advance-Fee and Ponzi-Style Investment Fraud
The Lopez scheme used tactics that appear across many investment fraud cases. Investors in Katy, Houston, and across Texas can reduce exposure by watching for these red flags:
- Guaranteed or unusually high returns – No legitimate investment can promise guaranteed results, especially at high rates
- Advance fee demands – Requests to pay fees upfront before receiving promised loan proceeds or investment returns
- Forged or unverifiable documents – Bank letters and account statements that cannot be independently confirmed
- Pressure to act quickly – Urgency designed to discourage due diligence
- Circular payments – Returns that come from new investor funds rather than actual investment performance
- Multiple LLCs with unclear purposes – Operating through a web of entities that obscures where money actually goes
If you recognize any of these patterns in an investment you made, preserving your records and consulting counsel promptly is the right first step.
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How Meyer Wilson Werning Can Help
Thirteen investors stood before a federal judge and described what this scheme took from them. For those who lost retirement savings, college funds, or business capital, the criminal sentence is only part of the picture. Civil recovery remains a separate and important path.
With more than $350 million recovered for investors nationwide, Meyer Wilson Werning has spent over 25 years holding the people and entities behind investment fraud accountable. If you suffered losses connected to Christopher Knight Lopez, Knight Nguyen Investments, or any related entity, and if a licensed financial professional facilitated your investment, contact us today for a free and confidential consultation. You pay nothing unless we recover for you.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What did Christopher Knight Lopez do?
Lopez pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. He and his brother operated a decade-long scheme that raised approximately $17 million from more than 40 investors using forged bank documents, fabricated account statements, and false claims of access to $2 billion in U.S. Treasury bonds. Client funds were misappropriated for personal use and used to pay earlier investors in a Ponzi-style structure.
What was the sentence?
On May 7, 2026, U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison sentenced Lopez to 120 months in federal prison followed by three years of supervised release. The judge stated he had never seen a white-collar crime more offensive during his time on the bench.
Were others charged?
Yes. Jayson Lopez, Christopher’s brother, also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Nadir Abdel Torres also pleaded guilty for helping the brothers obtain forged letters and bank statements used in the scheme.
What is an advance-fee fraud scheme?
Advance-fee fraud involves promises of large returns or loans contingent on the investor paying an upfront fee. The promised benefit never materializes and the fee is kept by the perpetrators. The Lopez scheme used false claims of Treasury bond access to justify collecting fees from clients who never received the promised loans.
Can I still pursue civil recovery even though a criminal sentence was imposed?
Yes. The criminal case and civil recovery are separate processes. Investors may pursue civil claims independently of the criminal proceedings. If a licensed broker or financial advisor recommended or facilitated your investment, additional claims under FINRA rules may also be available. Contact an investment fraud attorney to evaluate your specific situation.
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