Man charged in 'boiler room' scheme 'scammed more than 100 investors out of $14 MILLION while spending $5 million on resorts, jewelry and nightclubs'
A former Southern California man was charged Wednesday with running a 'boiler room' scheme that bilked more than 100 investors out of $14 million.
Ronald Shane Flynn, who once lived in Orange County, was indicted by a federal grand jury on 15 counts of wire fraud.
He's accused of soliciting investments with no intention of paying monies back and with using $5 million of the proceeds to fund his own lavish lifestyle.
Flynn, 57, is believed to have left the United States more than a decade ago, according to the District Attorney's office, and ran his scheme while operating mostly from the Philippines and Dubai.
The alleged fraudster runs Vuuzle Media Corp., which claims to be a streaming media and entertainment business with offices in New York, Las Vegas, and worldwide.
Ronald Shane Flynn was indicted by a federal grand jury on 15 counts of wire fraud
Ronald Shane Flynn runs Vuuzle Media Corp., which claims to be a streaming media and entertainment business with offices in New York, Las Vegas and worldwide
Prosecutors alleged that beginning in September 2016, the company offered what it claimed was an opportunity to invest in the business before its initial public stock offering, prosecutors said.
Flynn fielded a 'boiler room' of salespeople, mainly based in the Philippines, that used high-pressure tactics to solicit about $14 million from investors.
According to the indictment, Vuuzle never made a profit, Flynn never paid dividends to investors, and he never intended to take the business public.
Only a small percentage of the funds actually went toward the streaming business, authorities said.
About $5.5 million was used to pay commissions and expenses for the recruitment effort while Flynn used nearly $5 million to finance a luxury lifestyle that included buying jewelry, paying for resort stays and nightclub visits, authorities said.
Flynn's social media posts boast a lavish lifestyle involving expensive cars and yachts
Another social media photo captioned 'Just docked and thinking!!!!' using a stock photo of a yacht
Ronald Shane Flynn is charged with wire fraud after allegedly defrauding more than 100 investors of $14 million and faces up to 300 years in prison
Flynn, who goes by Ronnie Flynn or Ronnie Versace online, boasts on his website that he's a 'living testimony of a well-lived successful life.'
Flynn portrayed a lavish lifestyle on social media, posting what seems to be a mix of his own photos and stock photos.
One Facebook photo was captioned 'Dubai is nice at night. Even on my friends small boat the world becomes a smaller place.'
Many of Flynn's social media posts include photos of extravagant cars and yachts, along with pictures of piles of money and gold.
One photo captioned 'Gold just gold!!!!!' displays a photo not belonging to Flynn
Flynn often posted photos to social media displaying his lavish lifestyle at various destinations
A social media post shows stacks of money that Flynn claimed represented 'just another day at Vuuzle TV'
Attorneys for Vuuzle Media Corp. said in a statement that 'it did not use high pressure sales tactics as characterized by the Commission.'
They did admit to offering common stock investments at $5 per share, offering warrants, and that none of the exempt securities were registered with the Commission.
They also denied that Vuuzle's US bank account reflects total business revenue of less than $1,670.
If convicted of the criminal charges, Flynn could face a sentence of up to 300 years in federal prison.
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