An Upstate New York financial advisor accused of spending $4.8 million of his clients’ money on lavish vacations and luxury goods has been sentenced to eight-and-half years in prison, federal prosecutors announced Friday.
Charles Lawrence, 50, of Northpoint, is accused of defrauding 11 investors in New York, Wisconsin, North Carolina and abroad as part of an elaborate scheme involving a fake website through which he’d give his clients false updates about their investments.
Lawrence solicited money from his victims by selling them an opportunity to join a “trading program” that he said would bring his clients significant returns, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin said in a news release.
According to a 2023 complaint filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Lawrence lied to his victims by claiming he was the managing director of a defunct Swedish company and promising weekly investment returns that ranged from 25 to 100%.
Those who agreed to invest with him were asked to wire him money, which he then used to fund a luxurious lifestyle. That included international travels, chartered private jets and the purchase of luxurious items, including a Range Rover and a 10.8-carat diamond Cartier ring.
Lawrence also directed his victims to follow their investments on a website that turned out to be fake. “The web portal, Lawrence’s promises, and his updates were all fraudulent.” investigators said.
The scheme had a “devastating impact on the victims taken in by Lawrence’s false promises and the elaborate measures he took to convince them that their investments were safe and lucrative,” U.S. Attorney Gregory Haanstad said in a statement.
Lawrence was indicted in June 2023 on charges of fraud and money laundering.
On Thursday, District Judge Lynn Adelman sentenced him to 54 months in prison and ordered him to pay just over $4 million in restitution.
Citing his “brazen” lies, the judge also ordered Lawrence to forfeit the Cartier ring and the Range Rover.
The elaborate scene was “a scam from the very beginning,” Adelman said.
