Three Enter Guilty Pleas in Multi-Million Dollar Investment Scheme

In Del Rio, 58-year-old James Edward Cox of Waxhaw, NC, admitted to conducting an advanced fee investment scheme through which he and others obtained in excess of $5 million from their victims announced United States Attorney John F. Bash and FBI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs, San Antonio.

Appearing before United States District Judge Alia Moses yesterday afternoon, Cox pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.  Last year, co-defendants Kelly Ray Coronado, 50, of Del Rio and Gordon Richard Moskowitz, 54, of Sarasota, FL, pleaded guilty to the same charge. 

By pleading guilty, the defendants admitted that from January 2010 to January 2017, they implemented a high-yield investment scheme to obtain money from multiple victims under false pretenses, promises and representations.  Furthermore, they preyed on vulnerable parties – most of whom operated international non-profits – by promising them large-scale financing in exchange for upfront payments.  Using a tapestry of deceit involving fake business entities, websites, and aliases, the defendants collected upfront payments from their victims, then worked together to frustrate law enforcement detection and victim redress.

All three defendants, currently on bond awaiting sentencing, face a maximum of 20 years in federal prison and restitution.  Sentencing for Cox has yet to be scheduled.  Sentencings for Coronado and Moskowitz are scheduled for March 14 and 19, respectively, in Del Rio before Judge Moses.  Cox and Coronado have also agreed to forfeit to the Government their respective residences that were used to conceal the illicit proceeds gained from the defendants’ scheme.

Federal Bureau of Investigation special agents in Del Rio, Tampa and Charlotte conducted this investigation.  Assistant United States Attorney Paul T. Harle and Daniel S. Lee are prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.