Former Financial Adviser Arrested on Fraud Charge for Allegedly Swindling Millions from Clients

CHICAGO — A Chicago financial adviser has been arrested on a federal fraud charge for allegedly swindling millions of dollars from clients, including a man who received approximately $5 million in a wrongful conviction settlement.

MARCUS E. BOGGS, 49, is charged with one count of wire fraud.  Boggs was arrested on Aug. 22, 2019, at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago prior to boarding an international flight.  He appeared Monday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeffrey Cole and was ordered to remain detained in federal custody without bond.

The complaint and arrest were announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; and Jeffrey S. Sallet, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the FBI.  Valuable assistance was provided by the Chicago Regional Office of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which previously filed a civil enforcement action against Boggs.  The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney John D. Mitchell.

Boggs worked as a financial adviser in the Chicago office of a large wealth management firm, according to a criminal complaint and affidavit filed in U.S. District Court in Chicago.  From 2009 to 2018, Boggs stole at least $2 million from client funds and used the money to make mortgage payments, travel to lavish international locations, and pay other personal expenditures, the complaint states.

The complaint describes the misappropriation of funds from four of Boggs’s clients.  One of those clients received approximately $5 million in a 2014 settlement after being wrongfully convicted of murdering a 14-year-old girl, the complaint states.  The man invested some of the settlement funds with Boggs’s firm on the understanding that Boggs would manage the money and ensure that he had enough funds for the rest of his life.  Boggs instead stole approximately $815,000 from the man’s accounts to pay personal credit card debt, the complaint states.

Another victim cited in the complaint sold his home and invested the proceeds with Boggs.  The victim understood that Boggs would manage the funds in safe investments to generate retirement income, the complaint states.  When the value of his accounts began decreasing, Boggs misrepresented that it was due to fluctuations in the stock market, the complaint states.  In reality, Boggs had used approximately $127,000 from the man’s accounts to pay personal credit card debt, the charge alleges.

The public is reminded that a complaint is not evidence of guilt.  The defendant is presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. 

Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.  If convicted, the Court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes and the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.