David B. Fein, United States Attorney
for the District of Connecticut, announced that Robin Bruhjell Brass, 55, of
Washington Depot, pleaded guilty today before United States Magistrate Judge
William I. Garfinkel in Bridgeport to one count of mail fraud stemming from a
scheme to defraud investors of more than $1 million. Brass has been detained
since her arrest on November 15, 2011.
“This case serves as another reminder
that the investing public must be vigilant before entrusting their funds to
would-be investors,” U.S. Attorney Fein stated. “People should research their
investment advisors and verify information provided to them. Everyone should be
suspicious of guaranteed high rates of return, investments that promise ‘little
or no risk of loss,’ and investment scenarios that are difficult to understand.
I commend the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, SIGTARP, FBI, and Connecticut’s Department
of Banking for investigating this matter and securing justice.”
According to court documents and
statements made in court, between approximately March 2009 and November 2011,
Brass represented herself as a successful investment advisor and solicited
funds from investors, including investors who were elderly and in a vulnerable
physical condition. Brass told some potential investors that their money would
be safe if invested with her because she had a formula for investing that
ensured against loss and guaranteed a good return on investment. She also told
some investors that her investment funds were federally insured and that she
would personally guarantee investments in the fund with her own substantial
personal assets. As part of the scheme, Brass reassured some of her investors
by sending fraudulent account statements to them purporting to represent their
account balances and that their investments were performing well. Brass told
some investors that she could not repay them because the state of Connecticut
had “frozen” her accounts. These statements were false.
Brass failed to invest all of the funds
entrusted with her and used some of the money to pay personal expenses for
herself and her family, such as credit card bills, college tuition bills, home
furnishings and clothing; and to make “lulling” payments to previous investors.
BRASS also used investors’ money to make loan payments to a bank that received
funds though the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).
Victims lost more than $1 million as a
result of this scheme.
Brass is scheduled to be sentenced by
United States District Judge Mark R. Kravitz on July 18, 2012, at which time
Brass faces a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years and a fine of up to
$250,000.
This matter has been investigated by the
U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the Special Inspector General for the Troubled
Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP), the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the
State of Connecticut Department of Banking. The case is being prosecuted by
Assistant U.S. Attorney Susan L. Wines.
In December 2010, the U.S. Attorney’s
Office and several law enforcement and regulatory partners announced the
formation of the Connecticut Securities, Commodities, and Investor Fraud Task
Force, which is investigating matters relating to insider trading, market
manipulation, Ponzi schemes, investor fraud, financial statement fraud,
violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and embezzlement. The task
force includes representatives from the U.S. Attorney’s Office; Federal Bureau
of Investigation; Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation; U.S. Secret
Service; U.S. Postal Inspection Service; U.S. Department of Justice’s Criminal
Division-Fraud Section and Antitrust Division; U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission (SEC); U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC); Office of
the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP);
Office of the Chief State’s Attorney; State of Connecticut Department of
Banking; Greenwich Police Department; and Stamford Police Department.
Citizens are encouraged to report any
financial fraud schemes by calling, toll free, 855-236-9740, or by sending an
e-mail to ctsecuritiesfraud@ic.fbi.gov.
This case was brought in coordination
with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, which was
established to wage an aggressive and coordinated effort to investigate and
prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a
broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general,
and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a
powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is
working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch and, with state
and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes,
ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes,
combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover
proceeds for victims of financial crimes.
To report financial fraud crimes, and to
learn more about the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, please
visit Stopfraud.gov.
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