Citadel Energy – Former Chairman and Managing Partner Charged by for Role in Ponzi Scheme | Goodman & Nekvasil P.A. May Recover Investor Losses
According to the United States Attorney’s Office
A federal grand jury indicted Joey Stanton Dodson, chairman and managing partner of an energy company, charging him with crimes related to an alleged $15 million Ponzi scheme involving approximately 50 victims.
Assistant Attorney General Brian A. Benczkowski of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, United States Attorney David L. Anderson of the Northern District of California, and Special Agent in Charge John F. Bennett of the FBI’s San Francisco Field Office made the announcement.
According to the indictment, between November 2012 and May 2015, Dodson, 55, of Indio, Calif., used several related companies and partnerships, collectively known as Citadel Energy, to fraudulently raise $15 million by soliciting investments in three limited partnerships that would purportedly provide water-related services to oil and gas companies in North Dakota. The indictment further alleges that Dodson induced investors by making numerous materially false misrepresentations about these partnerships, including regarding how the investor funds would be used, the amount of his compensation, and the status of a potential acquisition of the partnerships by a private equity firm.
According to the allegations in the indictment, Dodson routinely commingled the monies between the three partnerships, which resulted in investor funds being used to pay the expenses of unrelated projects. Furthermore, the indictment alleges that Dodson misappropriated and diverted more than $1.3 million of investor funds for his own personal benefit, which included repaying former investors in unrelated Dodson-led investments, gambling activity, his wife’s BMW, and other expenses.
The indictment charges Dodson with four counts of wire fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343, three counts of mail fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1341, and three counts of money laundering, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1957 and 2.
An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. If convicted of the wire fraud charges, Dodson faces a maximum statutory sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine in the amount of $250,000. If convicted of the mail fraud charges, Dodson faces a maximum statutory sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine in the amount of $250,000. If convicted of the money laundering charges, Dodson faces a maximum statutory sentence of 10 years in prison and a fine in the amount of $250,000. The court also may order a term of supervised release, fines or other assessments, restitution, and forfeiture, if appropriate. However, any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.
Investors in Citadel Energy May Recover their Losses with Goodman & Nekvasil, P.A.
If you invested in Citadel Energy, Goodman & Nekvasil, P.A. may help you. Goodman & Nekvasil, P.A., a Clearwater, Florida, law firm with a national practice representing victimized investors, has recovered more than $180 million dollars on behalf of victimized investors.
All our cases are handled on a purely contingency fee basis by Kalju Nekvasil, Esq., formerly regional counsel with the NASD, now known as FINRA. Kalju Nekvasil, Esq. has practiced in this area of the law for more than 35 years.
There is no charge for an evaluation of your case. Further, we handle our cases on a contingency fee basis. This means that unless we recover money for you, we charge no attorney’s fee. Unless you recover any money, you pay us nothing, not even the costs and expenses which the firm will advance on your behalf.
If you incurred investment losses and would like your case evaluated by a securities attorney (again, there is no charge for an evaluation and all cases are handled on a purely contingency fee basis), please contact us.
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