Two Men Charged in $30M Wine Ponzi Scheme
Two men, including Christopher Miller, are set to face charges in a planned wine Ponzi scheme case in Brooklyn. James Wellesley, who also went by aliases Andrew Fuller and Andrew Garfield, and his co-defendant Stephen Burton, have been charged with wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering, each carrying potential sentences of up to 20 years in prison.
Wellesley, who was arrested in the UK in 2022, fought extradition to the US for three years. The pair, who ran Bordeaux Cellars, claimed to have vast cellars of rare vintages as collateral. However, when pressed, they could only produce 217 bottles. The scheme involved convincing investors they were backing high-interest loans for rich wine lovers, using imaginary collectors and non-existent loans.
Burton, a 60-year-old British national, was extradited from Morocco in 2023 after using a bogus Zimbabwean passport to enter that country. From 2017 to 2019, the pair solicited tens of millions in investments from residents of New York and other areas, promising profits from interest on the loans.
James Wellesley is expected to plead guilty in Brooklyn federal court on 7 October. Both defendants face serious charges and potential lengthy prison sentences if found guilty.
