On Wednesday, a long-time Las Vegas lawyer was indicted on federal charges of orchestrating a $460,000,000 Ponzi scheme that covered multiple states from Nevada to Utah to California and Arizona.
Matthew Wade Beasley was indicted on eight counts of wire fraud. He is also accused of money laundering. This comes nearly one year after Wade Beasley, a personal injury lawyer, was wounded and shot by FBI agents at his Las Vegas $1.1 million house. He was charged with assaulting a federal officer.
Since the standoff, Beasley was in federal custody. During which time prosecutors claim that the then-49-year-old lawyer “repeatedly admitted” to involvement in the scheme, while talking on the phone with an negotiator. Beasley was still in the house when FBI SWAT agents arrived.
FLORIDA MAN SENTENCED TO 6 YEARS FOR $4.2M COVID RELIEF FRAUD SCHEME
Jacqueline Tirinnanzi was Beasley’s lawyer, but she declined to comment. Beasley has not yet entered plea.
According to the indictment Beasley recruited investors to a company that offered short-term loans at high interest rates to clients who were awaiting payment for their personal injury cases. According to authorities, investors were promised a return up to 13% within 90-days of investing their money.
HTML3_ DETROIT PUBLIC WRITTEN OFFICIAL PLAEADS GUILTY TO CORRUPTION
Prosecutors said that there weren’t any clients. According to the indictment Beasley instead used new investor money for payments to his previous investors. This created the illusion that there were real clients who were repaying their loans with interest.
According to the indictment, hundreds invested over $460 million in the scheme between 2017 and March 2022 when Beasley was arrested. According to the indictment, Beasley allegedly used this money to finance what prosecutors called an “opulent” lifestyle that included luxury homes and vehicles as well as recreational vehicles.
Click Here To Get FOX NEWS App
Beasley will be arraigned in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas on Friday afternoon. Although a preliminary hearing in the assault case stemming last year’s standoff is scheduled for Friday, court records indicate that Beasley and prosecutors are still in negotiations.
After Beasley’s arrest last March, the Nevada Supreme Court banned him from practicing law in Nevada and prohibited him from handling client funds.