Little Rock Man Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud and Mail Fraud

LITTLE ROCK—Christopher R. Thyer, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas; Valerie Parlave, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); and Commissioner Heath Abshure of the Arkansas Securities Department announced that Mark Madison, 37, of Little Rock, Arkansas, entered a felony guilty plea on Tuesday, February 1, 2011, before Chief United States District Judge J. Leon Holmes. The guilty plea stems from his role in a securities fraud scheme to defraud more than 30 victims. Over a span of four years, more than $1,200,000 of investor funds were used by Madison for his own purposes.

“Practically every day a new and large-scale investment scam is being discovered by regulatory and law enforcement agencies. While it may seem almost commonplace in the current economic environment, make no mistake about the fact that my office takes each scam very seriously. The full and complete recovery of our economy necessarily depends on restoring consumer and investor confidence. Profiteers who build their fortunes by defrauding and swindling the hard-working people of this state will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” stated Thyer. Thyer added, “Once again, the Arkansas Securities Department has proven to be a committed and valuable partner in this endeavor. I am extremely grateful for the assistance ASD provided to federal law enforcement in this case.”

In May 2009, the FBI received information from the Arkansas Securities Department (ASD) regarding losses in securities transactions by Mark Madison, a licensed broker. ASD’s initial analysis had determined that while Madison represented to investors that their funds were invested in securities that would produce high returns, he was actually using a large portion of their investments for personal purposes.

Mark Madison pled guilty to one count of mail fraud and one count of wire fraud. The maximum statutory penalty for the each offense is not more than 20 years’ imprisonment and/or not more than a fine of $250,000 with three years of supervised release.

This investigation was conducted by agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the assistance and cooperation of the Arkansas Securities Department. Assistant U. S. Attorney George C. Vena represented the United States.