Greek Man Convicted Of Fraud And Money Laundering Charges

BOSTON – A Greek man was convicted in U.S. District Court in Boston yesterday for his role in perpetrating a multi-million scheme which defrauded developers of $7.9 million.

Following a three-week jury trial, Evripides Georgiadis, 49, of Larisa, Greece, was convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, 11 counts of wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was indicted in June of 2011. Sentencing is scheduled for August 18, 2014.

Between 2007 and 2011, Georgiadis participated in a conspiracy to defraud developers who were seeking financing for large-scale alternative energy and commercial projects by pretending to be a representative of a multi-billion dollar fund located in Luxembourg. Georgiadis and his co-conspirators convinced developers to give deposits between $300,000 and $1 million to this fake fund with the promise that the deposit would be fully refundable. Georgiadis and his co-conspirators spent and transferred the developers' deposit money out of the country, and the fake fund never financed any projects. In perpetrating this scheme, Georgiadis helped create fake letters of credit and a fake New Zealand bank, all to reassure developers about the safety of their deposits.

Georgiadis’ co-defendants, John Condo, Michael Zanetti and Frank Barecich, have all pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing.

United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz; William P. Offord, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation in Boston; Susan Hensley Regional Director of the U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration; and Vincent B. Lisi, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division, made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Alex Grant and Karen L. Goodwin of Ortiz’s Springfield Branch Unit.