A North Georgia man who pretended to be a securities broker and ripped off clients to the tune of more than $877,000 has been sentenced to nearly three years in federal prison.
Winston Wade Turner, 50, of Jefferson was sentenced this week in federal court in Gainesville, according to U.S. Attorney BJay Pak.
"Turner pitched a bogus biofuel scheme to former clients he met through reputable brokerage firms where he previously worked," said Pak in a press statement. "He lured his victims into signing ‘corporate notes’ with promises of immediate returns on a profitable biofuel producer which turned out to be only a shell company of his own invention."
Information presented in court indicated Turner began telling investors in July 2015 that was a broker for a company by the name of North American BioFuel, a purported biofuel producer based in Bradenton, Florida. Turner's victims were clients he had met from his previous employment at two financial services firms. Pak said he convinced his victims to move funds he had invested for them previously, and in some cases new funds, into the bogus company.
Turner promised the victims their 'loans' would generate a stream of monthly interest payments and return of the full principal at the end of investment periods ranging from one to three years.
In actuality, Turner had been fired, lost his broker’s license and been banned from the securities industry during the time he was taking money from his victims.
Turner entered a guilty to plea to mail fraud charges on June 5, 2019.
U.S. District Court Judge Richard W. Story sentenced Turner to two years, nine months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release. He also was ordered to pay $877,188 in restitution and he ordered to forfeit $160,149.52.
Follow this link for a previous story on Turner's indictment.
