From WSJ Staff Reports
A former Wake Forest investment advisor has pleaded guilty in connection with an $8-million Ponzi scheme.
Anthony Wayne March, the former operator of the nonprofit Asset Trader in Rolesville, has been accused of soliciting at least 22 victims to invest millions in charitable gift annuities and other products. March used the funds to pay for a lavish lifestyle, one that included a jet, a 104-foot yacht and a 15.8-acre property in The Bahamas, according to federal prosecutors.
He was charged last year with one count of securities fraud, three counts of wire fraud, one count of bankruptcy fraud, one count of obstruction of a bankruptcy case, three counts of false oaths and four counts of money laundering. He was arrested last November in South Carolina.
Today, Aug. 3, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, a charge that could mean up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He is scheduled to be sentenced in November.
March, according to the federal indictment, “targeted senior citizens by taking their hard-earned savings with inflated promises of value and safety, while luring these investors by falsely claiming to donate millions of dollars to charity.”
