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miami – Anson Jean Pierre tells fellow Haitian-Americans that investing with him will not only make them “billionaires” but that the hundreds of thousands of dollars they will ultimately invest in his company will be invested in Haiti. He promised to develop the business, authorities allege.
However, according to investigators, none of the claims were true.
Instead, Jean-Pierre said he used some of the money for himself, including vacations in the Caribbean, hotels, restaurants, flights and groceries. Officials claim he hasn’t spent a penny on the promised projects.
The 61-year-old, who was already the focus of a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission case for “affinity fraud” targeting fellow Haitian Americans, now faces state criminal charges.
Authorities arrested Jean-Pierre on Tuesday at the Miami-Dade County Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on a series of racketeering, money laundering, organized fraud and securities fraud charges. He is charged along with 50-year-old Edie Durossier.
Investigators with the Florida Department of Financial Regulation allege in the warrant that Jean-Pierre defrauded investors of nearly $700,000 from 2017 to 2019.
They said he ran a company called Brothers Investment Group International LLC in North Miami Beach, a city with a large Haitian-American population.
Durossier is accused of running Fort Lauderdale-based Advantage Realty and Investment Group. Authorities said the suspect falsely claimed to be an attorney and law professor at the University of St. Thomas.
The two men met in South Florida and promised to invest in real estate and agriculture in Haiti, where warrants are out for their arrests. Durossier is accused of telling investors he had developed a “renewable energy device” that would provide solar power and internet service to the poor Caribbean nation.
According to authorities, Brothers International also sold fake “foreign diplomacy classes” for $600 to investors, telling investors that if they paid and completed the course, they would be “recognized as a high-ranking representative (of the company) and “They will be given special privileges when they travel,” he said. ”
Authorities said Durossier applied for credit cards on behalf of investors in Brothers’ “real estate group,” obtained cash advances, and used the funds to “purchase and convert” homes in Miami-Dade County. He said he intended to use it for
According to the warrant, Jean-Pierre “continued to tell investors that their money was in the bank, when in fact he had not invested in a single project that would generate income and had actually already spent it.” ”.
Authorities allege that the only apparent investment by the Brothers was a $60,000 transfer to Burger IM Group USA Inc. as a down payment on a burger franchise; “We provided funds for this purpose.”
The money was later returned to the brothers. In addition to Jean-Pierre’s personal expenses, authorities allege that Brothers spent $200,000 in “consulting fees” on the project without notifying investors.
Authorities said Jean-Pierre paid some investors about $21,000 to settle complaints against Brothers Investments.
Jean-Pierre faces more than 40 felony charges and was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami-Dade on $730,000 bail as of Wednesday afternoon, according to jail records.
Although Durossier faces similar charges, they are not yet listed in court or jail records in Miami-Dade or Broward. It is not yet clear whether his whereabouts have been determined.
Please read the warrant:
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