Scottsdale Man Receives 96 Month Sentence for Investment Fraud of Over $28 Million

Department of Justice, Dec 08, 2006

Robert Alexander, 41, of Scottsdale, Ariz. was sentenced to 96 months in prison by U.S. District Judge David G. Campbell in Phoenix, Arizona after having plead guilty earlier this year to one count of Wire Fraud and admitting to devising a scheme to defraud an investor by convincing him to invest $350,000 in his company, R & S Marketing. Alexander admitted to not investing the money as promised and that the profits he returned to the investor were in reality simply a partial return on the investment. Robert Alexander was also order to pay over 9 million dollars in restitution to victims of his offense.

Robert F. Alexander was indicted in May 2005 on federal charges related to a fraudulent
investment scheme during which individuals were solicited to invest in non-perishable goods destined for export overseas. Victims were led to believe that their investment would produce a high rate of return upon the purchase and re-sale of the non-perishable goods.

In reality, the defendants conducted a Ponzi Scheme, a scheme in which a portion of the
returns were paid to initial investors from monies paid into the scheme by newer investors. The indictment alleged that the defendants transferred approximately $28 million dollars between July 2000 and January 2005.

The investigation preceding the indictment was primarily conducted by the FBI with
assistance from the Criminal Investigation Division of the Internal Revenue Service; the Food and Drug Administration, Office of Criminal Investigations and the Scottsdale Police Department.