Tax Preparer Steals $4.8 Million from Clients in Ponzi Scheme

Robert Van Zandt, c/o The Attorney General's Office

Robert Van Zandt, c/o The Attorney General’s Office

Robert Van Zandt, 70, of the Bronx-based Van Zandt  Agency, has plead guilty of stealing $4.8 million in client assets in a ponzi scheme that has been operating out of his office for decades, says New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.

Van Zandt,  to be sentenced on JJanuary5th, used his well known tax preparation agency to solicit funds from clients for financial products across the scale, from securities investment to real estate, all the while accessing the funds for personal use and paying debts.  Often, these products were sold with a promise of high return, often a tell-tale sign of a ponzi scheme.

Van Zandt will be sentenced to between 3 years and 8 months to 11 years in prison for what amounts to  35-count indictment that includes a multitude of charges, from 2 counts of securities fraud, 2 counts of scheming to defraud, and a whopping 29 counts of grand larceny.

His attorney, Michael Bachner offers his client’s apologies, saying he “truly regrets the financial hard he caused to investors.  Regrettably, after the financial collapse in 2008, Mr. Van Zandt unsuccessfully tried to recapture investor losses by selling securities that were not registered for sale in New York State”

The Attorney General’s Investor Protection Bureau has filed a still-pending civil lawsuit seeking $35 million in restitution.

 

 

 

 

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