Case Study: Defrauded Investors

Mr. Biegel was contacted by investors in a hedge fund set up by a well-respected Monterey County stockbroker.  They had discovered that this stockbroker was literally running a Ponzi scheme and had embezzled approximately $16 million of the money they had invested with him.  Prior to this discovery, these investors had been receiving annual reports showing the growth of their investments, anywhere from 12 to 22 percent per year.   From the initial investors who had contacted him, Mr. Biegel ultimately took over the representation of all 29 defrauded investors.    He created a limited liability company for the investors to serve as a vehicle to seek to marshal as many assets as could be seized or otherwise recovered and then to distribute the proceeds to his clients.  Working closely with the Monterey County District Attorney's Office, Mr. Biegel was able to recover over $4 million in hidden assets and gain agreement from his clients for a pro rata division of those funds.  Mr. Biegel also helped his clients understand the complicated criminal process going on coincidentally against the stockbroker and helped guide all his clients through the process which ultimately resulted in the broker being sentenced to 24 years eight months in State Prison.  Mr. Biegel's efforts on his clients' behalf became part of the subject of a television documentary produced by the Canadian Broadcasting Company called "The Truth About Liars."