Glendale man sentenced in $14 million Ponzi scheme
Los Angeles Daily News (Los Angeles, CA)
08/03/2009
Daily News Wire Services
A Glendale man who orchestrated a Ponzi scheme that fleeced investors
out of more than $14 million was sentenced today to more than seven
years in federal prison, along with additional penalties.
Antoine David Haroutunian, 47, pleaded guilty last March to one count
of mail fraud, admitting that, from June 2005 to August 2008, he
placed ads in the Los Angeles Times and on the Internet to solicit
investor funds, promising 24 percent returns.
Haroutunian admitted he made almost no investments and used victims’
money to line his own pockets and those of his associates.
U.S. District Judge Percy Anderson sentenced Haroutunian to 87 months
behind bars, followed by three years of supervised release, and
ordered him to pay $858,000 in restitution to his victims.
"This defendant was willing to profit at the misery of others,"
Anderson said.
"The simple truth is, this defendant is a thief — and in some ways
he’s worse then a thief," the judge said. "A pickpocket doesn’t know
his victims. This defendant knew his victims."
Haroutunian apologized for "these horrible acts," adding that he
wished he could "go back in time and knock some sense in my silly
head."
"I beg of you not to think of me as a monster," he said.
Anderson, though, said financial fraud crimes such as Haroutunian’s
have"far-reaching" effects on society as a whole, beyond the loss of
cash.
"There was a time when you could take a person’s handshake and take it
to the bank," the judge said. "But it’s a different world now, and
there are people like (Haroutunian)."
Last March, Haroutunian pleaded guilty in two other separate criminal
cases.
In one case, Haroutunian admitted that, in 2003, when he was employed
as a customer service representative at Bank of America, he used his
account-access privileges to obtain customer account information that
he and his associates used to withdraw funds from accounts without
authorization.
Haroutunian also admitted that he and his associates made unauthorized
transfers from accounts by fraudulently writing checks on the accounts
to themselves, their creditors and others.
As a result of the conduct in that case, Bank of America suffered
losses of more than $450,000, prosecutors said.
In another case, Haroutunian pleaded guilty to tax fraud. He admitted
that in 2004, he fraudulently obtained a federal tax refund of
$183,345 that was based on fictitious gambling winnings and losses he
falsely claimed on his personal tax returns.
Haroutunian is set to be sentenced in those cases in U.S. District
Court on Aug. 10.
Anderson said Haroutunian could remain free on bond, with electronic
monitoring, until he surrenders to federal authorities on Aug. 24.
The judge also determined that the 87-month sentence would run
concurrently with sentences to be handed down in the remaining two
cases.
"It is likely this defendant will re-offend if given the opportunity,"
Anderson said.
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