According to the charging documents, from 2000 to 2009, Soteriou and Parker engaged in a scheme to defraud persons investing in the “Birth of Innocence” movie project. According to court filings, this scheme resulted in more than $28 million dollars being contributed from persons believing they were investing in the production of this movie. The indictment alleges that only a small fraction (approximately $700,000) of this money actually went toward the production-related expenses of the movie. In contrast, Soteriou received approximately $3.8 million, and the majority of the money raised went to pay back earlier investors in the project.
United States Attorney Tristram Coffin recognized the critical role that the state of Vermont’s Department of Banking, Insurance, Securities, and Health Care Administration (“BISHCA”) played in discovering and bringing this scheme to an end. BISHCA filed suit against Parker in Vermont State Court in late 2009, alleging violations of state securities laws in order to stop this scheme from continuing. Coffin also stated that agents with the United States Internal Revenue Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, working together, spearheaded the federal law enforcement investigation.
Soteriou is charged with nine counts of wire fraud, five counts of mail fraud, one count of conspiracy, and three counts of money laundering. Parker has been charged with, and has agreed to plead guilty to, one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of filing a fraudulent tax document relating to his failure to disclose to the IRS money he paid to Soteriou.
FBI press release link: here
Alternate news link: here