Colorado Investment Fraud Artist Scams Investors Again To Pay For Lawyer

Hamilton Alan Bird of Colorado Springs, Colorado, was indicted yesterday on charges he defrauded investors out of nearly $700,000 which was used to pay for his defense attorney in a prior investment fraud scheme that bilked 350 investors out of some $7.5 million. Bird, who was indicted in the earlier case in May 2006, pleaded guilty to fraud charges in March 2008 and was sentenced in September 2008 to 24 years in prison. A $12.6 million judgement was also entered against Bird in May 2007 in the same case. The more recent investment swindle involves a Nevada-based company, EquityFX, Inc., through which Bird lured investors for purported high return foreign exchange currency investments. According to authorities, the scheme lasted from January 2006 through September 2008 wherein he only invested a portion in foreign exchange accounts and used the rest to pay earlier investors, his defense attorney and to enrich himself.

Read the story here, here and here.

Read the indictment here.

Hat Tip: Reader Joe