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Daryl Batts, a former youth pastor, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison, according to Greenvilleonline.com.  Staff writer, Eric Connor, did a great job outlining Batts’ pyramid scheme that defrauded investors of $12 million over the past few years.  (more…)

Harvy Lipman, a staff writer for NorthJersey.com, wrote a fantastic article about an investment scheme that preyed on church members.  David A. Talbot is best known for being Michael Vick’s financial advisor before being removed by a Virginia bankruptcy court for misappropriating Vick’s assets.  But now, according to the state attorney general, Talbot is at it again. (more…)

Jesus sent his disciples out telling them to be as “shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.”  Matthew 10:16.  When confronted with a salesman who calls himself a believer, though, Christians often forget the front half of that equation.  Christians are prime targets for scam artist because a salesman who can establish himself as a fellow believer is assumed to share the values of the faith.  I’ve seen it too many times.  The church drops its guard, and the salesman sucker punches them.  The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has halted an alleged scam in California that fits that mold.  (more…)

The FBI has raided the office of a California company called Christians in Crisis Investment Fund.  Stephen K. Wilson and his wife, Christina Silvas are under investigation for money laundering and running  a Ponzi scheme through that business.    

Silvas had her first fifteen minutes of fame in 2002  when a Christian school that her daughter attended told Silvas to quit her job as a stripper or her child would be expelled from the school.  The flap landed in the national media and got Silvas a photo shoot with Playboy magazine. (more…)

Corey Pritchett of Sandy, Oregon called himself a pastor.  According to Oregon prosecutors he used Craigslist to bilked at least nine low low-income people out of $43,000.

KGW News, Portland, reports: 

At least nine victims have been identified.  In one scheme, Pritchett told investors he would use their money to flip houses but used the money for his own business and personal use instead. (more…)

Churches are so often the targets of financial scams these days that you would think that, ”Thou shalt trust anyone who quotes scripture,” is the 11th commandment.  It isn’t, of course-Jesus called his disciples to be “as cunning as snakes but as innocent as doves.” (more…)

Regular readers of Investor’s Watchblog are familiar with the term “affinity fraud.”  Arizona prosecutors have been pursuing a big one for two years now, and yesterday got a break in the case. (more…)