After two-year investigation, Madison County tax preparer arrested for Ponzi scheme allegations, charged with 49 crimes
The New York State Attorney General announced the unsealing of the indictment, which accuses Miles Burton Marshall of stealing more than $50 million from 988 investors over 30 years.
Marshall is accused of taking money from clients under the guise of an investment, promising a generous 8% return, but instead using funds to pay returns to prior investors, pay personal expenses, and expenses of his other businesses.
In March of 2023, Marshall's attorney told NewsChannel 9 his client is 'not running a Ponzi scheme… as is evident by the fact that he has a number of successful businesses, including over 100 investment properties in and around the Hamilton area.'
The Attorney General's Office has been investigating Marshall's business practices since March of 2023 after he failed to pay debts to clients, as NewsChannel 9 was first to report.
In April of 2023, Marshall declared bankruptcy, saying he only has around $20 million in assets but owes $90 million to hundreds of people who loaned him money, believing it was an investment opportunity.
Many of the debtors have lost their life savings and are hoping some money is returned through the bankruptcy process.
In June of 2023, the U.S. government accused Marshall of running a 'Ponzi' scheme, indicating he used proceeds from new investors to pay off old investors.
In October of 2023, NewsChannel 9 reported that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was investigating the possible Ponzi scheme.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
4 hours ago
- USA Today
Federal agents conduct apparent raid outside Newsom event in Los Angeles
As California Gov. Gavin Newsom called for a special election for redistricting, numerous federal agents conducted a raid nearby. Just as California Gov. Gavin Newsom was announcing a special election for state redistricting at a cultural center in Downtown Los Angeles, numerous federal agents showed up nearby. While Newsom was inside the Japanese American National Museum on Aug. 14, stating his proposed changes to California's congressional districts to counter Texas Republicans' plans to create more GOP-friendly districts in their state, a group of federal agents was conducting immigration enforcement patrols in L.A.'s Little Tokyo district. Newsom and his press office both took to social media to announce the agents' presence, with an homage to President Donald Trump's punctuation and rhetoric. 'BORDER PATROL HAS SHOWED UP AT OUR BIG BEAUTIFUL PRESS CONFERENCE! WE WILL NOT BE INTIMIDATED!' the post said. U.S. Border Patrol Sector Commander Gregory Bovino told KNBC-TV that the agency was conducting roving immigration enforcement patrols in the area. Bovino told the station that one person was taken into custody and detained for being in the U.S. illegally. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass later told news media on site, "There's no way this was a coincidence," noting that the news conference featuring Newsom, Attorney General Rob Bonta and Sen. Alex Padilla, among others, was well-publicized. "They decided they were going to come and thumb their nose in front of the governor's face," Bass said. "Why would you do that? That is unbelievably disrespectful. It's a provocative act. They're talking about disorder in Los Angeles, and they are the source of the disorder in Los Angeles right now." The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately return USA TODAY's request for comment about the patrol in the area.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
The US ‘won't buy' more Bitcoin, says Treasury Secretary
The US will continue to build up its strategic Bitcoin reserve, but only through confiscations. 'To get into the 21st century, we've started a Bitcoin strategic reserve,' US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox Business on Thursday, but he added that the country won't buy 'anymore of that.' Bessent's words come as the amount of Bitcoin the US holds has come under question. In mid-July, US Senator Cynthia Lummis, a staunch Bitcoin advocate and co-author of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve bill, sounded the alarm after The Rage reported the US may own less than 29,000 Bitcoin — a fraction of the 200,000 Bitcoin cited in earlier estimates. 'If true, this is a total strategic blunder and sets the United States back years in the Bitcoin race,' she wrote on X. At the time, crypto czar David Sacks had said the government was in possession of around 200,000 Bitcoin, despite the fact a full audit has never been done. According to Bitcoin Treasuries, Uncle Sam owns more than 198,000 Bitcoin worth about $23 billion, though that figure does not distinguish between forfeited Bitcoin, which the government owns outright, and seized Bitcoin, which could still be returned to victims of alleged cybercrime. Just this week, White House crypto advisor Bo Hines stepped down amid heightened scrutiny over the size of the US Bitcoin strategic reserve. Strategic reserve Bitcoin advocates were quick to rail against Bessent's statement, accusing Washington of breaking its promise to build a sovereign Bitcoin stack. US President Donald Trump's campaign had floated the idea of a reserve as part of his 'crypto capital of the world' pledge, which many took to mean purchasing Bitcoin. A US strategic reserve didn't rub everyone the same way, however. Bitwise called it a 'gamechanger.' But crypto angel investor Nic Carter said the government should not 'run an ersatz crypto hedge fund.' Trump never explicitly promised to buy new Bitcoin. Instead, the reserve was designed to be filled with forfeited Bitcoin, rather than taxpayer-funded purchases. The motherlode So, where did the government's coins come from? Every Bitcoin the US controls was seized from individuals or organisations accused of illicit activities. The motherlode came from the Silk Road busts, including about 178,000 Bitcoin seized in early raids. Silk Road was a darknet market operated by now-liberated US citizen Ross Ulbricht. At one point, over 90% of all Bitcoin transactions went through the website. Additionally, there's about 50,676 Bitcoin seized from James Zhong, and 69,370 Bitcoin seized from an anonymous user dubbed 'Individual X.' Both were accused and convicted of stealing the funds from Silk Road. In 2022, the Bitfinex hack recovery added another 94,636 Bitcoin to US coffers. Smaller seizures from scams, Ponzi schemes, and cybercrime fill in the rest. One bit of what Bessent said did stand out: the US will not be selling any more Bitcoin. Over the years, the US has auctioned off some of its haul, including an alleged $4.2 billion sale in October 2024. Pedro Solimano is DL News' Buenos Aires-based markets correspondent. Got at a tip? Email him at psolimano@
Bloomberg
7 hours ago
- Bloomberg
Is Anybody Fighting Back in This Trade War?
William Clayton, a businessman who served successive US presidents and became one of the chief architects of the Marshall Plan, was no fan of tariffs. He rated the barriers erected during the Great Depression as one of the great crimes of the century. It's hard to imagine that Clayton, who believed that free trade was as important to prosperity as American aid and security guarantees, would remotely approve of Donald Trump's efforts to reshape commerce. This White House-engineered upheaval, which pushed tariffs to levels unseen since the Smoot-Hawley law of 1930, will be costly — even if the full price isn't immediately apparent. The global economy hasn't suffered some of the direst consequences that were predicted in April. Demand for US assets has held up, despite the superficial allure of the 'sell America' narrative. The International Monetary Fund doubts growth will suddenly crater, and inflation hasn't taken off. Has a bullet been dodged or is shock delaying the pain?
