A California man was sentenced to more than six years in prison for a $9 million Ponzi scheme where the suspect claimed he could turn cow manure into green energy.
The defendant, identified as Raymond Holcomb Brewer, falsely claimed for five years that he was an engineer who ran a company that built anaerobic digestion plants. He said that these could convert manure into biogas, said the United States Attorney's office for the Eastern District of California on Monday.
Cow Manure Ponzi Scheme
The 66-year-old Porterville resident told his investors that he was building the plants and would be able to generate millions of dollars in revenue by selling the biogas. The statement added that the suspect said that his investors would receive two-thirds of the profits that he makes, as well as tax incentives.
The U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of California, Phillip A. Talbert, said in a sentencing memorandum that none of the suspect's claims were true. He added that Brewer did not even begin construction on a single digester and took the money he got from his investors and ran away, as per the New York Times.
The suspect pleaded guilty to fraud charges in February, and federal prosecutors said he spent the money he got on a 3,700-square-foot custom home in California, a 12-acre plot of land in Montana, and new Dodge Ram pickup trucks.
Anaerobic digesters are equipment that use bacteria to break down organic material and then produce a gas that consists mainly of methane and carbon dioxide. Authorities from New York City and other areas have used the process to address sewage, food scraps, and farm waste while generating renewable natural gas.
Brewer's elaborate scheme of pretending to run such a complicated process started in 2014, the federal indictment said. He then conducted the affairs primarily through a Wyoming corporation that had its capital place of business in California. It was named CH4 Power, based on the chemical formula for methane.
Falsely Claiming To Produce Green Energy
The suspect gave his clients tours of farms where he falsely claimed that he would build the anaerobic digesters and showed forged lease agreements to dairy owners. He also faked photos and sent them to his clients to show his digesters under construction, according to The Messenger.
The 66-year-old also distributed his profits across multiple bank accounts and lied to his investors about the purpose of the transfers. When some farmers demanded Brewer return their money, he transferred funds from other farms to cover the expense.
Brewer later moved to Montana and assumed a new identity to hide after investors finally realized the fraudulent scheme and filed lawsuits against him. When he was arrested, he told authorities they had the wrong person. He also claimed he was in the United States Navy and saved several soldiers from a fire.
In a statement, prosecutors said that Brewer has since admitted that both of the statements were lies meant to curry favor with law enforcement. The suspect was initially indicted on 24 counts, which include wire fraud, money laundering, and identity theft, said CBS News.
