WEIRD NEWS: Con Man Sentenced in Cow Manure Scam
A California man has been sentenced to six years in prison for a Ponzi scheme in which he lied to investors about a fake business involving cow manure.
Ray Brewer orchestrated the scam from 2014 to 2019, telling investors that he had a company that was creating green energy by building machines called anaerobic digesters to turn cow manure into methane. He promised investors they would receive 66% of the profits. He even provided investors forged lease agreements with dairy farms, false bank statements, and fake pictures showing his machines being built. Unfortunately, none of it was true.
Brewer stole more than $8 million from investors and spread the money out over multiple bank accounts which he used for personal expenses like vehicles and a house. Investors eventually got suspicious and Brewer fled to Montana where he changed his identity. When he was finally arrested, he told authorities that he was previously in the Navy and once saved seven soldiers from a fire. He later admitted that, too, was a lie. He was sentenced to six years and nine months in prison. (NY Post)