Utah Man And Cousin Indicted For Alleged $140 Million Ponzi Scheme

A Utah man and his cousin have been indicted on forty-eight charges that they operated a massive real estate Ponzi scheme estimated to have raised at least $140 million from hundreds of investors.  Wayne Palmer ("Palmer"), 60, was charged with 14 counts of wire fraud, 17 counts of mail fraud, and 17 counts of money laundering, while his cousin, Julieann Palmer Martin ("Palmer Martin"), 47, faces 11 counts of wire fraud, 9 counts of mail fraud, and 17 counts of money laundering.  The mail fraud and wire fraud counts each carry a maximum twenty-year sentence, while the money laundering charges each carry a ten-year maximum sentence.  Wayne Palmer was previously the subject of an enforcement action filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2012.  

Palmer operated National Note of Utah ("National Note"), which he formed in 1992, and had worked in the real estate financing business since 1976.  Palmer Martin joined National Note in 1993 and served various roles, including "Client Development Manager."  National Note purportedly purchased real estate loans and funded new loans, and also dabbled in other unrelated ventures such as flipping rental properties, operating a mint, and extracting precious metals.  Palmer traveled across the country teaching real estate investment seminars, in which he offered investors two-to-five year investment opportunities that paid annual returns of 12%.  Potential investors were told that their funds would be used to buy and sell mortgage notes, underwrite and make loans, or buy and sell real estate.  In a brochure provided to investors, Palmer "guaranteed" "double digit returns" with "no worries about reductions in earnings," touted the reliability of the "monthly payments," and assured investors of the "safety of principle."   Between 1995 and 2012, National Note has raised over $140 million from at least 600 investors.  

According to authorities, National Note took on the characteristics of a Ponzi scheme as early as 2004 when the majority of funds raised from investors were simply loaned to National Note affiliates.   By 2009, over 90% of National Note's outstanding loans were to various affiliates.  While Palmer represented that National Note was highly profitable, the indictment alleges that National Note and its affiliates never had net income or positive net equity from 2004 to 2012 sufficient to meet its investor obligations.  Scheduled interest payments to National Note investors ceased in October 2011.  

The case is one of several high-profile alleged Ponzi schemes uncovered in Utah, which prompted a CNBC segment dubbing Utah as "Ponziland."  Authorities point to the large Mormon population as a primary target for fraudsters in what is termed "affinity fraud," and efforts to combat this fraud, including a 2010 public service campaign aimed at educating citizens, have fallen short.  Recently, Utah became the first state to pass legislation mandating the creation of a white collar crime registry that will feature a public database of offenders convicted of certain financial/securities crimes. 

The indictment is below:

8.19.2015 Criminal Indictment Wayne Palmer and Julieann Palmer Martin