Well Fargo Allegedly Knew of Matthew Beasley’s Ponzi Scheme

Last year, Matthew Beasley, a Las Vegas lawyer and sports bettor, came under fire for alleged participation in a $460-500 million Ponzi scheme. Beasley, who refused to cooperate with the police at first, is believed to have been a part of a group that took money from more than 600 investors to live in luxury. A new lawsuit alleges that the bank he used might have been involved as well.

The Scheme Involves Millions of Investors’ Money

Beasley and other scheme participants embellished investors’ money to buy private jets, boats, cars and luxurious properties, according to the lawsuit. Furthermore, earlier findings showed that the lawyer used a part of the money to pay back his gambling debts. He allegedly owed sportsbooks a whopping $4 million

When the police went to arrest the man, he resisted and threatened to commit suicide with a gun. When asked to put the weapon down, Beasley pointed it at the policemen, causing them to shoot him non-fatally.

The scheme Beasley participated in was believed to be led by J&J Entities owner Jeffrey Judd, who, according to Beasley, had the names of everyone involved in the fraud.

Beasley was indicted for five counts of wire fraud and three counts of money laundering for the scheme. His lawyer’s license was eventually revoked.

Wells Fargo Cannot Have Missed the Scheme

As it turns out, Wells Fargo Bank, the bank which Beasley used, should have been aware of what was happening. As a result, the financial service now faces a lawsuit as well.

A court-appointed receiver, Geoff Winkler, was tasked with bringing the litigation against Well Fargo, as requested by a federal judge. The judge has reasons to believe that the bank should have immediately identified the fraudulent scheme.

According to the new lawsuit, Wells Fargo should have seen the suspicious activity since the money related to the Ponzi scheme passed through Beasley’s account, according to earlier findings. According to the lawsuit, “a Ponzi scheme of this magnitude cannot run surreptitiously through an IOLTA and various related-party accounts.”

Furthermore, Wells Fargo employees might have actively assisted Beasley, the lawsuit argues. As it turns out, some Wells Fargo employees, including a manager at a Nevada-based branch, reported the suspicious activity. Concerningly, Wells Fargo failed to take adequate action, even asking branch employees to execute the suspicious transactions.

This will not be the first time Wells Fargo has been accused of having collections with the scheme. Around the same time Beasley was arrested, a lawsuit sought to find the banking firm’s relationship with the fraudsters.