Feds Charge Actor Zach Avery in Alleged $227 Million Hollywood Ponzi Scheme breitbart.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from breitbart.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
The news was announced by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Tuesday.
The SEC said it obtained an asset freeze and other emergency relief in an emergency enforcement action against Los Angeles-based actor Zachary Horwitz and his company, 1inMM (one in a million) Capital, LLC in connection with an alleged Ponzi scheme that raised over $690 million, said the statement.
Horwitz, 34, and 1inMM have been accused of telling investors they were purchasing film rights, purportedly to resell them to Netflix or HBO. The actor and company reportedly have no connection to either entertainment platform.
In its complaint, the SEC accused Horwitz of showing investors fabricated agreements and emails between himself and HBO and Netflix regarding film rights and offering investors returns in excess of 35%, and for many years paid supposed returns on earlier investments using funds from new investments, the SEC said.
Image via Getty/IronHeart
On Tuesday, Zachary Horwitz, a small-time actor, was arrested in Los Angeles for his alleged involvement in a massive Ponzi scheme, according to
The LA Times. Authorities say that the 34-year-old Horwitz defrauded investors out of $227 million by peddling fake licensing deals with HBO, Netflix, and others.
Horwitz has appeared in films using the name Zach Avery, and has credits that date back more than a decade.
He’s accused of fabricating emails from HBO and Netflix executives that touted sham distribution agreements so that he could acquire money to hold off investors who were demanding payment.
Actor Zach Avery Arrested in $227 Million Ponzi Scheme Case Involving Fake HBO, Netflix Deals
Zachary Horwitz, stage name Zach Avery, touted emails about fictitious film distribution contractsDiane Haithman and Jeremy Bailey | April 6, 2021 @ 6:07 PM Last Updated: April 6, 2021 @ 6:13 PM
Zach Avery in the 2017 film Curvature (Screen Media Films)
Little-known actor Zachary Horwitz, who performs under the stage name Zach Avery, was arrested Tuesday in Los Angeles on charges that he ran a Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors out of $227 million, according to an affidavit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court.
Horwitz, 34, was accused of fabricating emails from HBO and Netflix executives about fake film distribution deals in order to stave off demands for payments to investors, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday in Unites States District Court.