Brooklyn, NY - Five Charged In Fraud Scheme

Brooklyn, NY - Four men from New York City and one from Ronkonkoma have been indicted by a federal grand jury sitting in New Haven, Conn., in an alleged "boiler room" investment scheme that federal prosecutors say scammed $2.5 million from at least 50 people.

Those indicted include Digby Ferrera, 33, also known as Casper Weiss, of Brooklyn; John Blot, 26, also known as Victor Morgan, of Brooklyn; Shawn Haber, 33, also known as Leo Schwartz, of Brooklyn; Leslie James, 35, also known as Daryl McKinney, of Jamaica; and Scott Ciappetta, 38, also known as Steven Stiles and Steven Markowitz, of Ronkonkoma.

The indictment alleges that the five men falsely told investors that they worked for Blue Square Management, which prosecutors say was a fraudulent company with no legitimate operations. The defendants allegedly told potential investors during unsolicited calls that they could buy securities in a company called Cash Money Lending Corp., which prosecutors say was another fictitious company.

The potential investors were told that CMLC had a lucrative business managing thousands of ATMs nationwide and that an initial public offering for CMLC or a buyout of the company was upcoming in the near future. The defendants allegedly told the investors that they would see significant profits from the IPO or buyout.