Colorado Man Accused of Ponzi Scheme

A Denver man allegedly defrauded people in a national Ponzi scheme involving more than $12 million that was supposed to go real estate investments, the Colorado securities commissioner said Tuesday.

Investigators contend Jerrald Green, 48, used investors’ money to buy condos for himself in downtown Denver and to open two brokerage accounts, which incurred substantial losses.

Commissioner Fred J. Joseph said in a complaint filed in Denver District Court that Green received $12.5 million from investors, but only about $4.9 million of those funds were ever invested. None of the investments have yielded a substantial return, and Green used money from new investors to pay old investors, Joseph said.

A Denver judge on Tuesday granted the commissioner’s request to freeze Green’s assets. Green denied the allegations and said it’s all a misunderstanding.

“I’m not a flight risk. There’s no reason for why this should’ve have happened,” he said, referring to his assets being frozen.

“We have a good legal counsel, and I’m sure once the facts are understood, it will all be sorted out and we will be back to business,” he said. No charges have been filed against Green.

“Right now, this is just a civil case, but our investigation is ongoing,” said Gerald Rome, Colorado deputy securities commissioner. Rome said the Securities Division can refer evidence to prosecutors, who can decide whether to file charges.

Joseph said Green claimed that his company, Wealth Systems International Ltd., managed a network of international investments even though he doesn’t have a securities license. Investigators said Green marketed the millions of dollars of securities he sold as real estate investments.

Green is accused of hiring people in Texas to sell the securities for a commission. Also named in the complaint are Carl Todd and Richard Riner, both of San Marcus, Texas, and Chris Antony Zaal of McKinney, Texas.

A message left for Zaal at his company, Southwest Financial Group, was not immediately returned. A number listed for the business address of Todd and Riner is an automated operator that refers callers to a national directory assistance service.

Latest Comments

• November 19, 2009 at 2:24 am

  Batman says:

  Oh yeah? How much money do you think you "taxpayers" paid into SS when you keep harping about being overtaxed? Everybody hates how SS is set up but not one damn person ever ... read more
• November 13, 2009 at 9:11 am

  Ratemaker says:

  Nope. I meant exactly what I said. Once the government has confiscated my money through the FICA tax, it becomes theirs. They can cancel the SS program at ANY time in the futu... read more
• November 13, 2009 at 8:20 am

  B. Madeoff$ says:

  I think you mean you have a legal right to get what's left of your money back. Hence, same as SS.