Crime & Safety

Bellevue Man Sentenced to 13 Years in Prison in Connection with $65M Ponzi Scheme

US Attorney's Office says Robert Miracle, 50, told victims that they were investing in oil field development and services on oil and gas fields in Indonesia.

A Bellevue man was sentenced Monday in U.S. District Court of Seattle to 13 years in prison and three years of supervised release after a plea agreement in connection with a $65 million ponzi scheme that afforded him a lavish lifestyle, according to the United States Attorney's Office.

Robert Miracle, 50, of Bellevue, plead guilty to using the mail to defraud investors and owing the U.S. Treasury $326,650 in back taxes from 2003-2005.

Miracle and two others, Mukhtar Kechik and Fahimi Fisal, were charged in February 2009 in a twenty-three count indictment. The indictment charged them with Conspiracy, Mail Fraud, Wire Fraud, Money Laundering and Tax Evasion. Kechik and Fisal, who are Malaysian nationals, remain fugitives who have yet to appear for arraignment on the indictment, according to the press release.

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The men told investors that their companies were making money in oil development, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. However, money from new investors actually were being used to pay dividends from existing investors, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Miracle also transfered $500,000 in 2005 from the companies into his bank account and did not report the transfer as income, but as a loan, according to a press release. The U.S. Attorney's Office said that Miracle stated his income as $32,000 that year, underreporting his income by about $530,000 and avoiding about $150,000 in taxes.

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The names of the companies in the scheme were as follows: Laramie Petroleum, Inc.; MCube Petroleum, Inc.; Diski Limited Liability Company; Basilam Limited Liability Company; and Halmahera-Rembang Limited Liability Company, according to the press release. 

Between September 2004 and October 2007, investors paid more than $65.3 million into the scheme, with about $36.7 million being paid out as dividends. The bulk of the $28 million remaining funds were used to develop oil and gas fields in Indonesia, as well as to pay for a lavish lifestyle for Miracle, according to the press release.

Miracle was initially released pending trial, but was taken into custody in late May 2009, when he failed to comply with the conditions of his release. He remains in custody at the Federal Detention Center at SeaTac, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Miracle also will pay restitution to investors and back taxes, to be determined at a hearing on July 25, the US Attorney's Office reported. As part of the restitution, Miracle agreed to forfeit a 2 carat diamond ring purchased for more than $38,000 and a painting purchased in Italy for $27,000.

 


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