Investment Advisor Who Ran a $45 Million Ponzi Scheme Sentenced to Nine Years’ Imprisonment

February 10, 2010 - Earlier this afternoon, at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, New York, Edward T. Stein, an investment advisor based in Roslyn, New York, was sentenced to nine years of imprisonment for securities fraud and wire fraud. The sentence was imposed by United States District Judge Jack B. Weinstein.

On June 22, 2009, Stein pled guilty to operating a Ponzi scheme by inducing investors to purchase interests in several funds and partnerships that he controlled between 1998 and the date of his arrest in April 2009. While Stein falsely assured investors that he would make investments on their behalf with the funds provided to him, he used millions of dollars for other purposes, including personal expenses, investments in his own name, and to pay redemptions to other individuals who had invested money with him. The scheme resulted in over $45 million in losses to approximately 100 investors.

United States Attorney Benton J. Campbell expressed his grateful appreciation to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the agency that led the government’s investigation, and thanked the Securities and Exchange Commission for its assistance.

The government’s case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Scott Klugman, Winston Paes, and Claire Kedeshian.