Many people who live in Texas have big dreams of striking it rich with an investment, whether it's through an oil well or a tech stock. Of course, investors know that not every investment pans out the way they would like them to. Sometimes, these setbacks are just a matter of a bad market or bad luck. Sometimes, they're something worse. Unscrupulous individuals and businesses try to take advantage of people's desire for a profit and promise investors things they know they can't deliver. Sometimes these unscrupulous individuals are people the investors implicitly trust.
Recently in another state, a man pleaded guilty to securities fraud charges after prosecutors said he pocketed more than $500,000 in a more than $3 million fraud scheme. The man was a pastor.
According to authorities, the man worked for an investment company at the time of the fraudulent scheme. Federal prosecutors say he convinced 16 people to invest more than $3 million in project, promising them returns on the investment that he knew he could not back up. Prosecutors say he kept $570,000 of the money for himself. He is now the pastor of a church in Missouri and has appeared on several Christian television shows, calling for a return to fundamentalist values.
While the criminal justice system can help resolve some aspects of securities fraud, often the only way for investors to get back the money that was fraudulently taken from them is to file a civil lawsuit. Sometimes, these lawsuits involve a small group of investors. In other cases, they involve a large class of investors in a class-action suit. Either way, these can be time-consuming, highly technical affairs, but they may be the only way for investors to recover losses they suffered due to fraud. In many cases where the criminal justice system has failed to hold the wrongdoers accountable, these lawsuits may also be the only way to secure justice.
Attorneys who have experience in securities fraud can help Texans who have been victimized by investment fraud. Experienced attorneys can review the facts of the case and help investors to understand how the law may apply to their circumstances.