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Press Release

Founder of Heroes Academy Sentenced for $1.9 Million Fraud

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Virginia

RICHMOND, Va. – Larry Jay Horsey, 41, of Chesterfield, was sentenced today to 90 months in prison for an investment fraud scheme that caused a loss of $1.9 million to nine investors. Horsey was also sentenced to three years of supervised release, ordered to pay $1,767,065.76 in restitution to his victims, and agreed to forfeit $1,922,427.47 as proceeds of his offense.

Horsey pleaded guilty on Dec. 14, 2016. According to court documents, Horsey, a licensed insurance agent, was the founder and operator of “Heroes Academy,” a business that marketed itself as both a non-profit financial education school and a financial management company. Horsey represented himself to the public as a financial advisor, conducting financial planning seminars in Virginia and North Carolina. Between October 2012 and May 2016, Horsey targeted nine separate individuals, convincing those individuals to open what they believed would be investment or savings vehicles, such as an annuity or a Roth IRA, through Horsey’s Heroes Academy business. Instead of using those individuals’ savings as promised, however, Horsey instead spent the funds on various personal or business expenses. In total, Horsey defrauded those nine investors of a combined $1.9 million, and plead guilty to charges of mail fraud and engaging in monetary transactions derived from specified unlawful activities.

Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Adam S. Lee, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Field Office; Thomas Holloman, Acting Special Agent in Charge, Washington, D.C. Field Office, IRS-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI); and Robert B. Wemyss, Inspector in Charge of the Washington Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson. Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas A. Garnett prosecuted the case.

The case was investigated by the Fraud Task Force, including the FBI’s Richmond Field Office, IRS-CI, and USPIS, with assistance from the Virginia State Corporation Commission.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:16-cr-153.

Updated March 17, 2017

Topic
Financial Fraud