C. Tate George, former player for the NBA’s New Jersey Nets and CEO of purported real estate development firm The George Group, was indicted late last week on four counts of wire fraud in connection to an alleged $2 million Ponzi scheme. According to the indictment, George is accused of intentionally making false representations about his firm and about his personal finances in order to defraud potential investors. The indictment alleged that George told potential investors, including several former professional athletes, that his company managed more than $500 million in assets, and that their investments would be used to fund the company’s purchase and development of real estate development projects. In some cases, the indictment alleged, he told certain investors their money would be used only as “show money,” and he personally guaranteed some prospective investors that their investments would be returned, with interest. All together, he obtained more than $2 million in investments in The George Group between 2005 and 2011.Instead of investing the funds as promised, however, George allegedly deposited the investments in both The George Group’s and his personal bank accounts. Allegedly, he then used investments from new investors to make payments to older investors. The indictment also accuses him of using some of the money for his personal purposes. If convicted, George could face up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count of wire fraud.
