Con man, wife sentenced for swindling friends in Oklahoma out of investments
An admitted con man has been ordered to prison in Oklahoma for five years for swindling investors in his financial company out of more than $500,000.
Brian Kelly Berry, 53, said he was deeply remorseful for his actions.
Oklahoma County District Judge K. Nikki Kirkpatrick sentenced him and his wife, Amanda Yvonne Berry, on Tuesday after hearing from victims of their scheme. All had been either friends or had a personal connection to the couple.
"It's really appalling," the judge said of the offenses.
She noted that the victims felt ashamed, embarrassed, betrayed and even stupid. "You did that to them," the judge said. "It's unreal."
The judge ordered the couple to pay $495,341 in restitution. She ordered Brian Berry to spend 13 years on probation after his release and to complete 100 hours of community service.
The judge also barred him from getting a license to do financial work.
The judge did not send Amanda Berry to prison. The judge instead put her on probation for 18 years and ordered her to complete 100 hours of community service.
"I no longer trust people," said one victim, Tracy Johnson. "I am paranoid about everything and everyone."
A state multicounty grand jury returned an indictment against the couple in 2022 after an investigation. They were charged with one count of conspiracy and six counts of obtaining money by false pretenses.
They pleaded guilty to the felony offenses in January. Amanda Berry, 55, also expressed remorse at the sentencing Tuesday and asked for forgiveness from the victims.
Grand jurors alleged the conspiracy lasted from April 2018 to December 2020 and involved a company called Icon Financial Group LLC.
The couple had lived in Edmond but relocated to the Florida Keys in 2021. They have been married since 2013.
The Oklahoma Department of Securities also investigated the couple and got a judge in 2021 to ban them from offering or selling securities in the state ever again.
"The Berrys took advantage of long-term relationships and the trust placed in them − circumstances that often occur in connection with securities violations," the regulatory agency's administrator, Melanie Hall, said after the sentencing.
"No matter how well you think you know a person soliciting you for an investment, always do your homework before turning over your hard-earned money."
The Department of Securities reported the Berrys formed Icon Financial Group LLC in April 2018 to advise clients in "real estate and financial matters." Most of the invested money went to the Berrys for their personal use instead, the regulatory agency said.
One victim on Tuesday talked of seeing humiliating social media posts of the couple living lavishly, being on a boat in Florida and driving a BMW and a Porsche.
The two had worked as a team out of an office of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. in Oklahoma City, according to the Department of Securities. Some victims had legitimate MassMutual investment accounts and were tricked into transferring their funds to Icon.
Most of the restitution will go to MassMutual, which reimbursed victims who had been clients.
Assistant Attorney General Dane Towery said the Berrys paid some money back during the scheme in an effort to keep it going. During the pandemic, victims were told their money would be safer with Icon.
The prosecutor asked for both to be sentenced to 10 years in prison and 10 years on probation as well as paying restitution. Brian Berry had asked for only probation to better make restitution.
Judge Kirkpatrick was harder on Brian Berry because he has been accused of fraud before, in South Carolina. She told him he had been taking advantage of other people for 20 years.
After the sentencing, Attorney General Gentner Drummond said his office will continue to vigorously prosecute financial predators.
"Financial fraud of this magnitude causes devastating harm to hard-working Oklahomans who trusted these individuals with their life savings," Drummond said in a news release. "This sentence sends a clear message that white-collar criminals who exploit positions of trust will face serious consequences in Oklahoma."
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Con man, wife sentenced for cheating friends in Oklahoma
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