A former North Carolina resident pleaded guilty to conducting a money laundering conspiracy in connection with the $32.5 million Queen Shoals Ponzi scheme announced Anne M Tompkins, United States Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Gary D Martin, 60, of St. Augustine, Fla. entered his guilty plea on Wednesday, February 8, 2012, before United States Magistrate Judge David C Keesler.
…According to court documents and court proceedings, on or about December 2007, Martin formed Queen Shoals Consultants, LLC (QSC) in North Carolina. Thereafter, Martin and others induced victims to invest over $28.5 million in the Queen Shoals Ponzi scheme operated by Sidney Hanson. Although Hanson never directly told Martin that Queen Shoals was a Ponzi scheme, Martin induced victims to invest in the Queen Shoals Ponzi scheme through a series of false and fraudulent representations, omissions of material facts and deceptive half truths. Specifically, Martin admitted to falsely claiming that QSC had over 20 years experience in financial services and international finance and that he had a vast background in financial services, including the silver, gold, and foreign currency trading markets.
In truth and fact, Martin had no such experience, held no professional licenses related to finance or investments, and never had engaged in any silver, gold, or foreign currency trading.
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