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Thursday, September 28, 2017

ROBERT BUCKHANNON'S CO-DEFENDANT, TERRY RAWSTERN, TAKES A DEAL: Sentencing Set For December 28, 2017 In Las Vegas


Terry Rawstern, co-defendant along with Robert Buckhannon in a $34 million hedge fund fraud case, plead guilty yesterday morning. During the 35 minute change of plea hearing, Rawstern plead guilty to one count of Conspiracy to Commit Wire fraud.

In return, the government agreed not to bring any additional charges against Rawstern arising out of the investigation in the District of Nevada which culminated in the plea agreement and based on conduct known to the United States. 

In addition, the remaining counts of the indictment will be dismissed at the time of sentencing, which is scheduled for December 28, 2017.

Based on the plea agreement’s “Offense Level Calculations” it’s likely Rawstern, like Buckhannon, may be sentenced to less than 12 months in prison. However, the stipulations outlined in the agreement, signed on July 18, 2017 by Rawstern, do not bind the judge who'll sentence him in December.

In addition, Rawstern was ordered to make restitution in an amount of $248,892.58. 

Pretrial Services requested Rawstern's pretrial supervision be terminated, and that Rawstern's passport be returned to him.

According to the October 1, 2014 indictment, from April 2008 through April 2010, Buckhannon and Rawstern and co-conspirators were managing members of two Bradenton, Florida-based hedge funds, Arcanum Equity Fund, LLC and Vestium Equity Fund, LLC. 

The duo allegedly engaged in a fraudulent scheme to misappropriate $34 million they raised from investors by misrepresenting how they would use the investors’ funds and misrepresenting that there were safeguards over the investors’ money, such as an independent trustee and independent fund administrator. 

Buckhannon and Rawstern then looted and bankrupted the hedge funds by taking payments on false and fictitious profits and taking improper and undisclosed loans. The indictment stated that as a result of the defendants’ conduct, investors lost approximately $13.1 million. 

In April 2010, the hedge funds voluntarily filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and are now under the control of court-appointed trustees. 

Buckhannon, who's currently peddling (along with Chris Paganes, a Michigan-based hedge fund associate) an unlicensed fertilizer in Michigan aimed at the micro grow marijuana market, is busy trolling dating sites while he awaits his October 31, 2017 sentencing. 

According to his August 1, 2017 plea memorandum, Buckhannon is likely to receive a 12 month sentence and an as yet undetermined restitution. 

If he'd gone to trial and been convicted on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, Buckhannon could have faced up to 20 years in federal prison. 

3 comments:

  1. Why do they let these crooks go. 12 months and he will just turn around and do the same thing, it's all he knows.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I’ll do 12 months in a resort prison for 13 million!

    ReplyDelete