Latest news with #Constantinou
Toronto Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- Toronto Sun
Fugitive FX Ponzi scheme boss assumed dead on the run may be alive: Police
Anthony Constantinou stole at least £70 million and was sentenced to 14 years in prison in his absence Published Jun 06, 2025 • 2 minute read Anthony Constantinou departs Southwark Crown Court in March 2023. Photo by Chris J. Ratcliffe / Bloomberg The fugitive boss of a bogus London FX firm convicted as the mastermind behind a Ponzi-style investment scheme, was thought to have died in Mexico while on the run, but London police aren't so sure. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Anthony Constantinou stole at least £70 million (US$95.1 million) from investors he lured with the promise of risk free returns, and was sentenced to 14 years in prison in his absence. News outlets including UK tabloid The Sun and Miami-based website OffshoreAlert reported that Constantinou died of a heart attack in July 2024 while in Guadalajara, Mexico. A death certificate has been filed in Mexico and seen by the City of London Police, but investigators remain unconvinced that Constantinou has actually died, according to lawyers at a court hearing on Thursday. They have evidence of Constantinou's cremation within 24 hours of his death, but some of the documents reviewed contain inaccuracies, including that Constantinou's mother was Mexican. He is known to be of Greek-Cypriot heritage. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'There remains an active search for his whereabouts,' David Durose, a prosecution lawyer, said in court. 'If there were more legitimate grounds to believe that the defendant may have died the Crown would be looking more carefully at it.' Constantinou had no legal representation at the hearing. The police want to recover some of the investor cash that was lost in the scheme and asked the judge to make an order that would help them seize assets. So far recoveries have been minimal, despite Constantinou enjoying a lavish lifestyle, with money being traced through a number of offshore jurisdictions. Constantinou was sentenced in his absence after he disappeared weeks into his trial in 2023. A warrant for his arrest was issued shortly after. Weeks after he disappeared he was arrested in Bulgaria for carrying fake identification documents, but for unknown reasons he was let go. His firm, CWM, lured in victims with false promises of generous returns on risk-free foreign exchange market transactions and lavish perks. Operating out of an office in the City of London's Heron Tower, he enticed investors from late 2013 by boasting of generous returns on allegedly risk-free foreign exchange market transactions, for a minimum investment of £100,000. Client funds were also used to boost Constantinou's lifestyle including his £2.5 million wedding in Santorini, the court heard. Sunshine Girls Sunshine Girls Toronto & GTA Toronto & GTA Olympics
Straits Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Fugitive ponzi scheme boss assumed dead may be alive, London police say
Anthony Constantinou stole at least £70 million (S$122 million) from investors he lured with the promise of risk free returns. PHOTO ILLUSTRATION: UNSPLASH LONDON – The fugitive boss of a bogus London FX firm convicted as the mastermind behind a Ponzi-style investment scheme was thought to have died in Mexico while on the run, but London police are not so sure. Anthony Constantinou stole at least £70 million (S$122 million) from investors he lured with the promise of risk free returns, and was sentenced to 14 years in prison in his absence. News outlets including UK tabloid The Sun and Miami-based website OffshoreAlert reported that Constantinou died of a heart attack in July 2024 while in Guadalajara, Mexico. A death certificate has been filed in Mexico and seen by the City of London Police, but investigators remain unconvinced that Constantinou has actually died, according to lawyers at a court hearing on June 5. They have evidence of Constantinou's cremation within 24 hours of his death, but some of the documents reviewed contain inaccuracies, including that Constantinou's mother was Mexican. He is known to be of Greek-Cypriot heritage. 'There remains an active search for his whereabouts,' prosecution lawyer David Durose said in court. 'If there were more legitimate grounds to believe that the defendant may have died the Crown would be looking more carefully at it.' Constantinou had no legal representation at the hearing. The police want to recover some of the investor cash that was lost in the scheme and asked the judge to make an order that would help them seize assets. So far recoveries have been minimal, despite Constantinou enjoying a lavish lifestyle, with money being traced through a number of offshore jurisdictions. Constantinou was sentenced in his absence after he disappeared weeks into his trial in 2023. A warrant for his arrest was issued shortly after. Weeks after he disappeared, he was arrested in Bulgaria for carrying fake identification documents, but for unknown reasons, he was let go. His firm, CWM, lured in victims with false promises of generous returns on risk-free foreign exchange market transactions and lavish perks. Operating out of an office in the City of London's Heron Tower, he enticed investors from late 2013 by boasting of generous returns on allegedly risk-free foreign exchange market transactions, for a minimum investment of £100,000. Client funds were also used to boost Constantinou's lifestyle including his £2.5 million wedding in Santorini, the court heard. BLOOMBERG Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Yahoo
Businesses on shaky Santorini fret as bookings come to a halt
STORY: On the famous Greek island of Santorini, hotel owner Yiannis Constantinou is preparing for tourists that may not arrive. He says a recent barrage of tens of thousands of minor earthquakes have taken a toll on his business. 'The bookings have come to a halt. We don't have serious cancellations, they are those that are expected, similar to the previous years, but certainly the rhythm of the bookings has stopped, there is this waiting (going on), everyone is waiting to see what is happening, both us and the people who are to visit." The quakes led authorities to declare a state of emergency on the volcanic island. While there's been no major damage, thousands of people left on planes and ferries. That included frightened employees, and Constantinou says he's scrambling to find new staff. 'I am trying to be optimistic, we are here because we can't just sit idly by, that is worse, so we came, we are preparing the rooms, and if no one comes, well I don't know, we will stay in them and take a vacation ourselves.' Contantinou says he's hopeful that maybe he'll bounce back later in April, when domestic tourists travel for Greek Orthodox Easter. Elsewhere on Santorini, Vangelis Philitsis runs a horseback riding club where saddles have mostly been empty. He says there's only been two customers since the start of the year, a pair from the US that arrived on Thursday. Philitsis says it's 'unbearable,' and that time is running out for a successful tourist season. 'Things are getting really tight. Until now it was relaxed, we were waiting, waiting that it would stop at some point…If things continue like this and it stays for another month, we are finished.' Evangelos Fousteris is Vice President of the Santorini Trade Association. He warns that a weak tourist season could trigger a cascade effect beyond Santorini. 'The reduction of the tourist season will impact the island 100 percent but not only this one, but also the surrounding islands, because Santorini is a key island, considered a flagship for Greek tourism. When a visitor wants to visit Greece and his destination along with others is Santorini, if Santorini is not a part of it, he might cancel the whole trip.' A quake expert told Reuters Wednesday that seismic activity is decreasing, but he could not estimate how long it may last. He did say that there's 'no chance' of a volcanic eruption from the island's active volcanoes. Sign in to access your portfolio
