Man charged in $300M Ponzi scheme involving veterans, investors

SANTA ANA, Calif. — South Carolina authorities have charged a man from Southern California with conspiracy to engage in mail and wire fraud after prosecutors say he defrauded about 2,600 people, including many veterans.

The Orange County Register reported Monday that 64-year-old Scott Kohn was arraigned Nov. 13 along with his company Future Income Payments which operated the alleged scheme.

Prosecutors say the company stopped doing business in 2018 before paying $300 million owed to investors.

U.S. Attorney’s Office officials say many of the pension holders are veterans of the United States armed forces.

RELATED

Veterans more likely to be targeted by sophisticated financial scams

Veterans are twice as likely to unknowingly participate in a scam as the general population, Carroll Harris, a U.S. Postal Inspection Service senior law enforcement official.

By Niko Boskovic, Medill News Service

Prosecutors say pension holders made monthly payments and the company solicited investors to buy those payments disguised as cash flows.

A lawyer for Kohn could not be reached.

Authorities say Kohn could face 20 years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.

In Other News

From Grinch greetings to Santa sightings, the holidays come to troops

Holiday helpers have been busy, as plenty of organizations and individuals have been working to make the days a bit brighter for troops and their families.

Will most troops move under new household goods program in 2025?

More than half of installations in the continental United States are moving troops' shipments under the new system.

VA to resume new electronic health record rollout in mid-2026

The project was scheduled to take 10 years and cost $16 billion. Nearly eight years later, only six of VA’s 170-plus medical sites are using the software.

Suicides among veterans remain unchanged despite federal focus

The figures are the latest available from federal census data and suggest limited progress on the issue of suicide prevention by Veterans Affairs leaders.

Looming government shutdown could hurt military families, veterans

Plans to avert a partial government shutdown starting this weekend appeared scuttled after President-elect Donald Trump opposed the bipartisan deal.

Load More