According to the US attorney’s office for the Eastern District of California, a man from California, Ray Brewer, has been sentenced to over six years in prison for operating a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme.
The scheme involved Brewer claiming he could transform cow manure into green energy. Court records spanning from March 2014 to December 2019 revealed that Brewer managed to steal more than $8.7 million from investors.
The US attorney’s office explained in a news release that Brewer convinced investors that he could construct anaerobic digesters, large machines that produce methane through the breakdown of biodegradable materials by microorganisms, on dairies in multiple California and Idaho counties. This methane was then intended to be sold as green energy on the open market, as stated in the release.
Investors were promised both tax incentives and 66% of all net profits as part of the fraudulent scheme.
To gain the trust of his victims, Brewer provided them with tours of the dairies where he claimed the digesters would be built and presented them with forged lease agreements with dairy owners, as stated in the US attorney’s office release. Additionally, Brewer sent altered agreements with banks, creating the illusion that he had obtained millions of dollars in loans to fund the construction of the digesters.
In an attempt to further deceive investors, he also forged contracts with multinational companies and showed them counterfeit photos of the digesters under construction.
Once Brewer received funds from investors, he transferred the money to bank accounts opened under various names, including an alias, his relatives, and different entities. In some instances, Brewer offered refunds using funds received from other investors who had not authorized such use of their money.
After his investors discovered the fraud, Brewer assumed a new identity and relocated to Montana. However, he was eventually arrested. During his arrest, Brewer initially attempted to mislead authorities by claiming they had mistaken his identity. He also fabricated stories about his heroic actions in the Navy, including saving soldiers from a fire by shielding them with his body. Brewer later admitted that these tales were lies intended to manipulate law enforcement, according to the news release.
Authorities discovered that Brewer had used the embezzled funds to make various purchases, including two plots of land spanning over 10 acres, a custom 3,700 square-foot home, and new pickup trucks.
