Crime & Safety

Former Talk Radio Host Convicted for Part in Multi-million Dollar Ponzi Scheme

Burnsville Resident and former Christian radio host Patrick Kiley, age 74, was one of three convicted in federal court for participating in a $194 million ponzi scheme orchestrated by Trevor Cook.

After a month-long trial, a federal jury found Burnsville resident Patrick Kiley and two co-defendants guilty of participating in a Ponzi scheme that bilked investors out of millions of dollars.

The scam was orchestrated by Trevor Cook. Kiley acted as a "barker" for the operation, soliciting investors through the radio talk show he recorded each week at his Burnsville home. 

Tuesday, the jury convicted Kiley, Jason Bo-Alan Beckman, and Gerald Joseph Durand on 12 counts of wire and mail fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, and two counts of money laundering. 

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“People save money their entire lives for retirement or to send their children to college. Fraudsters who choose to bilk them out of that money by pretending to be their friends or ‘advisors’ are some of the worst kinds of criminals," United States Attorney B. Todd Jones said following the verdict. "We take our obligation to prosecute them very seriously, and we are very pleased with the jury’s verdict in this particular case.”

Evidence presented to the jury showed that between 2005 and November of 2009, the defendants, along with Cook and Christopher Pettengill, defrauded investors who thought they were investing money into a foreign currency trading program. Cook, Kiley and company promised a double-digit rate of return, with little or no risk to investment assets. They assured their victims that the assets would be held in segregated accounts and could be withdrawn at any time.

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Over four years, the group of conspirators took in $194 million in investments for the currency program. Of that total, $109 million was actually sent to currency trading firms, while $68 million was lost in higher-risk trading. The men used $52 million to pay off previous investors and diverted about $30 million to themselves.

According to past report published in the Star Tribune, Kiley was a key driver for the operation, inducing hundreds of his radio listeners ("Truth Seekers") with warnings of a coming financial Armageddon. Between prayers, he exhorted them to avoid financial ruin by turning over their life savings to Cook and his associates. The message found a worldwide audience: Kiley's show was carried on more than 200 stations across the United States, including KSTP Radio (1500 AM) and on the Worldwide Christian Radio network. The ploy drew in retirees, workers from all walks of life, and even Jacquelyn Mitchard, a best-selling novelist.

Cook was sentenced to 300 months in federal prison in August 2010. In July 2011, Cook associate Jon Jason Greco followed, pleading guilty to two counts of making false statements to federal agents. He was sentenced to 10 months of incarceration.

Pettengill pleaded guilty to a variety of charges in June 2011. He is has not yet received a sentence. 

Kiley, Beckman and Durand could face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on each wire fraud and mail fraud count, 10 years per money laundering count, and five years for conspiracy. U.S District Court Chief Judge Michael J. Davis will hand down a sentence at a future hearing.

Until then, Kiley and his co-defendants are being detained pending sentencing.

Want to know more? Check out the original complaint filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.


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