KNOXVILLE, TN—Brian Murphy, 43, of Knoxville, Tenn., was sentenced on January 8, 2015, to serve 45 months in prison by the Honorable Thomas A. Varlan, Chief U.S. District Judge.

Murphy was also ordered to pay $18 million in restitution to the victims in the case.

Murphy pleaded guilty in August 2014, to a federal indictment charging him with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. The indictment arose out of Murphy’s participation with Joyce Allen and the late Charles Candler in the operation of a business known as Benchmark Capital, which was discovered to be a Ponzi scheme that financially ruined many of its hundreds of victims. Candler, Allen, Murphy and others vouched for the soundness of investment annuities they sold when in fact they were worthless.

The indictment and subsequent conviction of Murphy was the result of a three-year investigation conducted by the Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Frank Dale and Jennifer Kolman represented the United States.