Asheville Man Is Indicted For $13.5 Million Ponzi Scheme

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – A federal grand jury sitting in Charlotte has returned a criminal indictment against Hal H. Brown Jr., 69, of Asheville, N.C., charging him with securities fraud, wire fraud and transactional money laundering, for orchestrating a $13.7 million investment scheme, announced Andrew Murray, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.

John A. Strong, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Charlotte Division, joins U.S. Attorney Murray in making today’s announcement.

According to allegations contained in the indictment, from at least 2012 through September 2019, Brown fraudulently obtained more than $13.5 million from at least 23 victims, some of whom were at, or near, retirement age, by engaging in an investment scheme through his company Oodles Inc. and its various affiliates (collectively “OODLES”). As alleged in the indictment, to induce victims to invest their money, Brown falsely represented that OODLES owned hundreds of millions of dollars in intellectual property, namely family entertainment shows and movies. As part of the scheme, Brown repeatedly lied to victims about the imminent sale of those intellectual properties to various well-known media companies. To perpetuate the fraud, the indictment alleges that Brown developed marketing material seeking investments or loans for OODLES that claimed large returns on funds invested or lent to the company.

As alleged in the indictment, to convince victims the scheme was legitimate and to appease investors who sought an explanation about delays in payouts, Brown provided victims with a number of fraudulent and misleading statements and fictitious information, including fake bank statements and falsified company agreements, among others.

Read more: https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdnc/pr/asheville-man-indicted-135-million-ponzi-scheme