The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has brought charges against Anthony Vernon Parker for running a multi-million pound investment scheme which led to almost £1.1m in unrecoverable losses.
Parker was sentenced to three years and four months imprisonment at Leicester Crown Court today (5 January) after he pleaded guilty to one count of fraud by false representation and one count of participating in a fraudulent business, according to the CPS.
The CPS brought the charges against the defendant following an investigation by Leicestershire Police after a total of 42 victims were referred to them by Action Fraud.
Between January 2011 and March 2018, Derby-based Parker convinced friends and family members to place money with him for the purposes of a spread betting scheme in which he told clients that he would invest their money in a controlled gambling scheme involving currency trading and the stock market.
He also told clients that this system was "virtually risk-free", while he was actually running a Ponzi scheme whereby returns were paid to clients using other clients' funds, according to the CPS.
He used "hundreds of thousands of pounds of this money" clothing, rent/letting fees, credit card repayments, pubs and restaurants, utilities, subscriptions, and purchases from Amazon, according to the CPS after analysis of the defendant's accounts.
Crown Prosecution Service specialist prosecutor Jane Mitchell said: "Parker acted with greed to convince dozens of victims to part with their own money under the pretence that he would be using it to make smart investments for them.
"Many of these investors have suffered significant losses because of their involvement with Parkers' scheme and he manipulated a large number of people who trusted him with the false picture he painted of his ‘trading.'
"We want to encourage all those who think they've been a victim of an investment scam to come forward and report it.
"The CPS works closely with police, to bring fraudulent offenders like Parker to justice and we will be pursuing his ill-gotten gains through the Proceeds of Crime Act."
