A California man pleaded guilty in federal court to scamming 19 victims, including romantic partners and financial institutions, out of as much as $1.5 million in a scheme that involved lying about being a successful businessman and a former Navy SEAL, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday.
Ze’Shawn Stanley Campbell, 35, scammed his victims over a period of six years from April 2014 to April 2020, convincing them he was a millionaire who owned several successful businesses, including McDonald’s franchises, a gym chain in Texas and a security company, the DOJ said in a news release. He also told victims he was a successful cryptocurrency and real estate investor who served in Iraq and Afghanistan as a Navy SEAL, the DOJ said.
Once he gained their trust, Campbell persuaded his victims to send him money to support his businesses and to invest for a return. Campbell received $61,452 from one victim in December 2017. Campbell told the victim he would invest the money in Bitcoin, but instead “used the funds to support his lifestyle, including by making payments on a BMW and Mercedes-Benz that he had leased in the name” of another victim, according to the plea agreement filed on Oct. 6.
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The Orange County, California, man also defrauded various banks, according to the plea agreement, which said he would obtain the social security numbers and names of real people, and use their identities to obtain loans and credit cards.
In total, Campbell admitted to causing his victims to lose anywhere from $250,000 to $1.5 million, the DOJ said.
He pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering, and faces up to 30 years in federal prison, according to the plea agreement.
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Campbell’s attorney, Pat Harris, told USA TODAY in an email Tuesday that the U.S. Attorney’s office provided a “cherry-picked rendition” of the case and that there “is a lot more to this story” that would be revealed at a sentencing hearing scheduled for Jan. 9.
On top of prison, Campbell faces a $500,000 fine or “twice the gross gain or gross loss resulting from the offenses, whichever is greatest,” according to the plea agreement.