Home Buffalo Press Releases 2010 Georgia Man Charged in $5,000,000 Wire Fraud Scheme
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Georgia Man Charged in $5,000,000 Wire Fraud Scheme

U.S. Attorney’s Office October 01, 2010
  • Western District of New York (716) 843-5700

ROCHESTER, NY—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that a federal grand jury in Rochester has returned a five-count indictment charging Tony Leon Smith, 61, of Loganville, Georgia, with wire fraud. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 or both.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Tiffany H. Lee, who is handling the case, stated that the Indictment charges Smith with knowingly devising a scheme to defraud and to obtain money by means of false and fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises related to a foreign currency exchange investment. 

In June 2007, Smith was staying in the Rochester area and represented himself to be a man with success in investing in foreign currency. He also invested in humanitarian causes. In July 2007, he met an area entrepreneur who was in the midst of looking for a new investment vehicle for the proceeds from the sale of his business. Smith recommended that the victim invest with him in a foreign exchange instrument and represented that this investment was approved by the United States Federal Reserve and would present a 100 percent return in 90 days. Smith also claimed he would not receive any commission up front for brokering the investment but could be paid after the victim his profits from the investment. 

The defendant directed the victim to set up a corporation in St. Kitts and wire $5,000,000 to the island. In the months that followed, Smith directed a total of $537,467 to be transferred into his accounts in Rochester, New York and into the account of Dr. David Hill, also of Rochester. The victim was never advised by Smith that any portion of the money he wired to St. Kitts had been wired back to the Rochester area. Dr. Hill then began a series of wire transfers to the Philippines and Ghana, depleting the funds that had been transferred to him. Dr. Hill died on December 14, 2008.

After the victim had invested his money, he and Smith spoke regularly. During those conversations, Smith provided a variety of excuses for the delay in the payment from the investment and gave assurances that the investment was moving toward completion.

The Indictment is the culmination of an investigation on the part of special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of James H. Robertson, Special Agent in Charge; and the United States Postal Inspection Service under the direction of Robert Bethel, Inspector in Charge of the Boston Division.

The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

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