Results tagged “philipbarry”

Philip Barry, accused of running a $40 million Ponzi scheme out of a Bay Ridge storefront, was charged with securities fraud by the feds yesterday. Barry allegedly promised his investors—many from his neighborhood—12-21% returns based on investments with stock options but he actually used the money to pay his own bills, speculate on real estate in Sullivan County... and start a mail-order porn business. The Daily News reports, "Duped investors [said] they knew he had a side business selling DVDs and CDs on eBay - and some said they always suspected something fishy. 'He said that prisons were his best customers,' said a shopkeeper near Barry's office who lost about $30,000 in the scheme and saw Barry walk by daily with a hand truck loaded with boxes on his way to the post office. 'He said they were videos, but he never said what kind.'" Barry's scheme fell apart in 2007 when clients wanted to cash out and the investigation began last year, when Barry himself told the feds he was running a Ponzi scheme.

Hey, you've lost your life savings of $120,000 to $150,000 with an investor who was apparently running a $40 million scam out of a Bay Ridge storefront—what do you tell the Daily News? If you're Barbara Grebin, you say, "I don't hate him; I wouldn't want to waste my time hating anybody," but you make sure to add, "But I would like to throw him down the sewer." Philip Barry is accused of running a Ponzi scheme with dozens of victims—even NY State Conservative Party boss Michael Long lost $15,000, yet Long said, "I don't think he's a crook. I think he really felt that he was investing wisely and making money for people." Hence Barry's comment to the Daily News, "It's all in real estate. I'm going to keep on working to make sure everyone gets the profit they are entitled to." (Maybe his modest behavior had people hooked, too: "Investors said he was even too cheap to buy a sandwich for lunch... he brought in packets of cheese and bread to make his own.") While the authorities haven't charged him with a crime—though documents show he was promising clients returns of 12-36%—a judge ordered that he pay "hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages" to clients.