Two Men Sentenced To Federal Prison For Their Roles In International High-Yield Investment Scheme

BOSTON – Two men were sentenced today for their roles in a scheme to defraud investors from across the country out of millions of dollars.

            Alan Gilner, 78, of New Smyrna Beach, Fla., and Randi A. Bochinski, 49, of British Columbia, Canada, were sentenced by United States District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock.  Gilner was sentenced to 84 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $5.2 million in restitution.  In June 2012, Gilner was convicted of conspiracy, mail fraud, wire fraud and money laundering following a seven-day jury trial.  Bochinski was sentenced to 72 months in prison; three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $5.2 million in restitution.  In May 2013, Bochinski pleaded guilty to wire fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering for his role in the scheme. 

            Gilner and Bochinski promoted a series of purported high-yield investment programs to investors throughout the United States, including friends and acquaintances of Gilner in Florida, as well as individuals in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Nevada, and Virginia.  The men promised extraordinary rates of return on the investments within a short period of time, and also pledged that investors’ principal would be insured or maintained in an escrow account.  Once investors sent their money to either Gilner or Bochinski, however, the defendants diverted the funds for other uses, including their own personal use. 

            In order to lull investors into believing that their funds had been invested as promised, Bochinski and Gilner typically made at least some purported “return” payments using money from other investors.  In some instances, Bochinski and Gilner attempted to return principal to frustrated investors by using counterfeit checks.