Tag: ponzi scheme

July 13, 2011 General Ag News and Notes Post a Comment

Maui man sentenced to 12 years for Ponzi scheme

A Maui accountant who led a long-running Ponzi scheme that cost his investors $8 million is being sentenced to serve nearly 12 years imprisonment without the possibility of parole.

U.S. District Judge David Ezra handed down the sentence Wednesday against 61-year-old Lloyd Y. Kimura, who previously pleaded guilty.

Kimura, the brother of Hawaii County Prosecuting Attorney Jay Kimura, told the judge he’s sorry for his crimes.

Kimura used his business, Maui Industrial Loan and Finance Co., to attract investments since 1986, with money collected by later customers used to pay initial clients.

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 his income will be garnished after he’s released from prison.

Maui man sentenced to 12 years for Ponzi scheme – Hawaii News – Staradvertiser.com

January 7, 2011 General Ag News and Notes 1 Comment

Hawaii County Prosecutors Quit

Friends for Justice learned today that 5 employees in the Hawaii county prosecutors office resigned on or around January 4th.

East Hawaii has 24 prosecutors.

Information is scarce, and no one is talking, but we have reason to believe the majority of resignations may have all been out of the East Hawaii office in Hilo. This corresponds with Hawaii county prosecutor Jay Kimura’s brother Lloyd Kimura pleading guilty to nine counts of bank and mail fraud and theft in a 24 year ponzi scheme involving 50 clients and the theft of over 20 million dollars. That story like this one got no coverage in the local Hawaii county newspapers.

Friends for Justice was in court in Hilo Thursday January 6th in Judge Hara’s court supporting Reverend Nancy Harris’s religious marijuana case. The prosecutor in that case Rick Damerville made reference to an event in the prosecutors office on January 4th in response to the judges inquiry about scheduling a trial date for Reverend Harris. The defendant in the case made inquiries, because her trial was delayed until July and was told Damerville was staying because of an unexpected mass exodus from Jay Kimura’s office. The prosecutor in Rev. Harris’s case (Damerville) had been scheduled to retire in the near future but said he would be staying on indefinitely.

The widespread corruption in Hawaii county government and Mr. Kimura’s refusal to pursue those cases as well as the dead ends in other high profile murder cases like Peter “boy” Kema Jr, and Clayton Larry Alani, may have been too much for some of the employees in the office.

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January 5, 2011 General Ag News and Notes Post a Comment

Maui man pleads guilty to Ponzi scheme

A Maui man who previously pleaded guilty to violating state financial securities laws in connection with his operation of a multi-million-dollar Ponzi scheme pleaded guilty in federal court this morning to mail fraud and bank fraud.

As part of his agreement with the federal prosecutor, Lloyd Y. Kimura, 61, of Wailuku, was to turn himself in this afternoon pending sentencing in June.

Kimura pleaded guilty today to four counts of mail fraud, two counts of bank fraud and three counts of theft of employee pension benefits.

“I took money from people I knew and did not pay them back,” he said.

Kimura faces maximum 20-year prison terms for the mail fraud and bank fraud and five-year prison terms for the theft when a federal judge sentences him in June. He faces a mandatory 20-year prison term for securities fraud when a state judge sentences him next month.

State and federal prosecutors have agreed that Kimura will serve his state and federal sentences at the same time in federal prison.

Kimura has agreed that the people who “invested” money with him lost between $7 million and $20 million.

His lawyer, Philip Lowenthal, said the U.S. Bankruptcy Court is doing the accounting to determine exactly how much each investor lost and expects to have a total figure by this summer.

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December 29, 2010 General Ag News and Notes 1 Comment

Deal means 20 years in Kimura case

WAILUKU – Wailuku businessman Lloyd Kimura pleaded guilty to four counts of securities violations in 2nd Circuit Court on Tuesday morning.

Circuit Judge Joseph Cardoza accepted a plea agreement by which Kimura will be sentenced to two 20-year terms and two five-year terms, to run concurrently.

However, it was revealed in court that Kimura also plans to enter a plea to as-yet unannounced federal charges in U.S. District Court in Honolulu on Jan. 5.

Cash-only bail of $110,000 was imposed but deferred until Jan. 6, to make it simpler for Kimura to travel to his federal arraignment.

Kimura’s Maui Industrial Loan & Finance Co., also known as Maui Finance, failed this year. He filed for business and personal bankruptcy, listing liabilities of about $23 million.

It took about 40 minutes for Kimura to plead guilty, but he had to speak only a few words: “yes” and “guilty” as Cardoza read through the formalities to make sure he understood the charges and waived his right to have his case presented to a grand jury or to have a trial.

Kimura, 61, spoke in a low, even tone. After it was over, he said he had no comment.

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December 25, 2010 General Ag News and Notes Post a Comment

Maui businessman accused of Ponzi scheme charge

State prosecutors have charged a Maui businessman accused of running a Ponzi scheme with two counts of making false or misleading financial statements and two counts of prohibited securities practices.

The state attorney general’s office said Thursday that Maui Industrial Loan & Finance Co. President Lloyd Kimura filed false or misleading statements in documents for his company.

It also alleges he defrauded two couples of at least than $100,000.

Maui Industrial has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Kimura has filed for personal bankruptcy.

Maui Industrial’s bankruptcy trustee has sued 25 of the company’s investors to recover funds, alleging the money they received was the fruit of a Ponzi scheme.

Kimura could not immediately be reached for comment.

Maui businessman accused of Ponzi scheme charged – Hawaii News – Staradvertiser.com

December 24, 2010 General Ag News and Notes Post a Comment

Charges filed against Maui businessman

WAILUKU – The state attorney general has charged Maui businessman Lloyd Kimura with two counts of prohibited securities practice and two counts of making false or misleading financial statements.

The complaint was announced in a news release Thursday evening. It had been filed in 2nd Circuit Court on Monday.

Kimura’s attorney, Phil Lowenthal, said he had been talking with prosecutors for months to reach a settlement in the collapse and bankruptcy of Kimura’s businesses.

Kimura waived a grand jury, so the charges were presented as an information, not an indictment.

Kimura, 61, is president of Maui Industrial Loan & Finance Co. and for many years operated Lloyd Y. Kimura Inc., a certified public accounting firm.

The complaint alleges that between June 30, 2008, and June 30, 2009, Kimura filed false or misleading statements and omitted statements required by law on behalf of Maui Industrial Loan. These had been filed with the Financial Institutions Division of the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs.

The complaint also alleges that between February 2007 and June 2009, Kimura, in connection with the offer, sale or purchase of any security, employed a scheme to defraud people in amounts greater than $100,000.

Prohibited securities practice is a class A felony with a maximum penalty of 20 years or a fine of $50,000 or both. Making false financial statements is a class C felony with a maximum penalty of five years or a fine of $20,000 or both.

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