Ridgeland Man Indicted for Bankruptcy Fraud
| U.S. Attorney’s Office March 26, 2014 |
JACKSON, MS—William Marshall Wolfe, 44, of Ridgeland, was arraigned in federal court today pursuant to an indictment charging him with two counts of bankruptcy fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Gregory K. Davis, Acting U.S. Trustee Henry G. Hobbs, Jr. of Region 5, FBI Special Agent in Charge Daniel McMullen, IRS-Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Gabriel L. Grchan, and Inspector in Charge Robert B Wemyss of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
According to the indictment, William Marshall Wolfe, owner of Steadivest LLC, devised a fraudulent scheme in which he solicited money from investors under the guise of seeking investments for the rehabilitation of real estate. Wolfe continually solicited money from investors by providing misleading information about the financial stability of his company, Steadivest LLC, and its related entities and promising high returns on investments.
As a part of his scheme to defraud investors, Wolfe would seek new investors to meet his current obligations with existing entities. As part of his continuing scheme, Wolfe placed Steadivest LLC and its related entities in bankruptcy. On the eve of bankruptcy, Wolfe fraudulently transferred real property belonging to Steadivest LLC or its related entities to another company, through which he managed and solicited investors, in order to keep the properties from the bankruptcy estate.
The U.S. Trustee referred the matter to the U.S. Attorney for prosecution. The investigation was conducted by the FBI, IRS-Criminal Investigation, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service with assistance from the U.S. Trustee.
The case is scheduled for trial before U.S. District Judge Carlton W. Reeves on June 2, 2014. If convicted, Wolfe faces a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine on each count.
The public is reminded that an indictment is a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of the federal criminal laws. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.