INDIANAPOLIS A Westfield man was sentenced to five years in prison for wire fraud and money laundering. He will also serve three years of supervised release and was ordered to pay over $1,500,000 in restitution.
According to court documents, George S. Blankenbaker Jr., was charged April 1, 2021 with wire fraud and money laundering after an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation. Between May 2008 and August 2016, Blankenbaker created three business entities, Stargrower Commercial Bridge Loan Fund 1 LLC, Stargrower Asset Management LLC and EDU Holding Trust. He later used these entities, which he owned and managed, in the execution of a Ponzi and money laundering scheme.
INDIANAPOLIS Acting U.S. Attorney John E. Childress announced today that George S. Blankenbaker Jr. of Westfield, Indiana, was charged in federal court for two counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering.
According to the information, between May 2008 and August 2016, Blankenbaker created three business entities, Stargrower Commercial Bridge Loan Fund 1 LLC and Stargrower Asset Management, LLC (hereinafter the Stargrower Entities) and EDU Holding Trust (the Trust). He later used these entities, which he owned and managed, in the execution of a Ponzi and money laundering scheme. The victims of this scheme placed enormous trust in Mr. Blankenbaker to wisely manage and invest their hard-earned money, said Childress. Instead, he exploited their trust through deception and lies for his own personal gain.
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