HONOLULU – A Maui accountant who led a long-running Ponzi scheme that cost his investors $8 million was sentenced Wednesday to serve nearly 12 years in federal prison without the possibility of parole.Lloyd Y. Kimura used his business, Maui Industrial Loan and Finance Co., to attract investments since 1986, taking money collected from later customers to pay initial clients. He pleaded guilty in January.
Dressed in a white prison jumpsuit but without handcuffs, the 61-year-old apologized for his crimes.
“I’m sorry for what I’ve done, and I accept the ruling of the court,” Kimura told U.S. District Judge David Ezra.
Kimura, the brother of Hawaii County Prosecuting Attorney Jay Kimura, was ordered to repay his 50 victims the $8 million they lost.
His assets amount to only a fraction of the amount he owes, so at least 10 percent of his income must be paid to victims after he’s released from prison, Ezra said.
He was given 11 years, eight months in prison, a sentence on the high end of federal guidelines, which called for a prison term of between 10 years and 12.5 years.
Kimura’s sentence may have been higher if he hadn’t cooperated with authorities to repay his victims and accept guilt, Ezra and Assistant U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson said.
Ezra said Kimura was motivated by “personal greed” when he lost his victims’ life savings and college savings, denying them comfortable retirements and the ability to provide educations for their children. Continue reading ‘Accountant behind Ponzi scam gets nearly 12 years’
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