逾200万美元、约27名投资者受骗：佛州男子Jedidiah Harris庞氏骗局被控证券欺诈，已同意认罪
美国司法部阿拉巴马州北区联邦检察官办公室宣布，佛罗里达州 Sanford 男子 Jedidiah Michael Josiah Harris，37 岁，因经营一宗庞氏骗局骗取投资者逾 200 万美元，被控证券欺诈；与起诉书一并提交的认罪协议显示，Harris 已同意认罪，法庭将另定其正式认罪的日期。
检方说，2022 年至 2025 年间，Harris 通过他控制的两家公司 The Invictus Group, LLC 与 Pivot Global Analytic, LLC 实施骗局。他把自己包装成成功的投资者与期权交易员，声称能用自己的投资策略为客户赚得异常高的回报。
按起诉书与认罪协议，Harris 向投资者承诺，他们的钱会与他本人及其他投资者的资金合并，投入与标普 500 指数相关的期权交易，并谎称每月回报可达 10% 至 40%。他还向投资者发送伪造的月度对账单，显示其投资取得了惊人的收益。
检方说，Harris 并没有按承诺投资客户的钱，而是把钱挪作私用。整个骗局期间，他共骗取约 27 名受害者合计逾 200 万美元，受害者分布在阿拉巴马州及其他州。
联邦检察官 Phillip W. Williams Jr. 说，保护投资者、维护公众对金融市场的信心是重要优先事项，他对阿拉巴马证券委员会细致的调查工作与有力的协作表示赞赏。助理联邦检察官 Ryan Niedermair 说，检方将追究任何利用辛勤工作的美国人牟取私利的人。
联邦调查局（FBI）伯明翰分局主管特工 David R. Fitzgibbons 说，Harris 以蓄意、精心策划的庞氏骗局猎取 27 名投资者、窃取逾 200 万美元，FBI 将继续追究金融欺诈者。阿拉巴马证券委员会主任 Amanda Senn 提醒，任何人承诺或保证高额回报，都应当引起警觉。
此案由联邦调查局（FBI）与阿拉巴马证券委员会调查，助理联邦检察官 Ryan P. Niedermair 与 John B. Ward 负责检控，阿拉巴马州助理总检察长 Steve Feaga 与 George Martin 协助。起诉书仅为指控，Harris 在被法庭证明有罪之前推定无罪。
More Than $2 Million From About 27 Investors: Florida Man Jedidiah Harris Charged With Securities Fraud in Ponzi Scheme, Agrees to Plead Guilty
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Alabama announced that Jedidiah Michael Josiah Harris, 37, of Sanford, Florida, has been charged with securities fraud for operating a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors of more than $2 million. A plea agreement filed with the one-count information indicates that Harris has agreed to plead guilty, and the court will set a date for his plea.
Prosecutors said that between 2022 and 2025, Harris used two companies he controlled, The Invictus Group, LLC and Pivot Global Analytic, LLC, to execute the scheme. He presented himself as a successful investor and options trader who could earn unusually high returns for clients through his investment strategies.
According to the information and plea agreement, Harris told investors their money would be pooled with his own funds and those of other investors and invested in options tied to the S&P 500, and falsely claimed they would receive returns of 10% to 40% per month. He also sent investors fraudulent monthly statements showing extraordinary returns.
Prosecutors said Harris did not invest the clients' money as promised and instead used it for personal use. Over the course of the scheme, he defrauded approximately 27 victims in Alabama and elsewhere of more than $2 million in total.
U.S. Attorney Phillip W. Williams Jr. said protecting investors and maintaining confidence in financial markets are important priorities, and commended the Alabama Securities Commission's investigative work and partnership. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Niedermair said the office will hold accountable anyone who takes advantage of hard-working Americans for personal gain.
David R. Fitzgibbons, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Birmingham Division, said Harris preyed on 27 investors and stole more than $2 million through a deliberate and calculated Ponzi scheme. Alabama Securities Commission Director Amanda Senn said that whenever someone promises or guarantees high returns, red flags should go up.
The FBI and the Alabama Securities Commission investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ryan P. Niedermair and John B. Ward are prosecuting, with assistance from Alabama Assistant Attorneys General Steve Feaga and George Martin. An information contains only charges, and Harris is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Source: U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Alabama press release
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：位于 Washington 的美国司法部大楼。GSM联邦机构固定图库照片，摄影 APK，CC BY 4.0，来源 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: U.S. Department of Justice headquarters in Washington. GSM federal fixed image library photo by APK, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
