Indiana Man Sentenced in Extensive Fraud Scheme

Scam Artist Bilks Investors Out of $948K, Gets 15 Years in Return

April 30, 2010 - PLANO, TX—U.S. Attorney John M. Bales announced today that a 60-year-old Indianapolis, Indiana man has been sentenced to federal prison for his role in an investment fraud scheme in the Eastern District of Texas.

LOUIS SIMPSON was sentenced to 183 months in federal prison on Apr. 29, 2010 by U.S. District Judge Richard A. Schell. Judge Schell also ordered Simpson to pay restitution in an amount to be determined at a later date.

According to information presented in court, beginning in 2006, Simpson devised a marketing scheme to defraud investors by claiming to operate a fraudulent program that he had with the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Simpson marketed the fraudulent program to investors and obtained approximately $948,500 in wired funds from these investors. To facilitate the scheme, Simpson provided investors with fraudulent letters from HUD officials and false bank documents from financial institutions. Simpson was indicted by a federal grand jury on June 11, 2008 and charged with federal violations. After a five-day trial, a jury found Simpson guilty on Oct. 29, 2009 of seven counts of wire fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft.

This law enforcement action is part of President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force.

President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.

This case was investigated by the FBI and HUD and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shamoil Shipchander.