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Ivan Ramos, 39, of Hillside was working for New York Life when he sought out inexperienced investors from among customers who bought life insurance from him or people he met at company marketing events or through mutual acquaintances, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachel Honig said.
He “led his victims to believe, through misrepresentations and omissions, that two entities that he controlled, Invexperts LLC and Wealth Seeds Capital LLC, were associated with New York Life when they were not,” Honig said.
“The victims believed that the money they entrusted to Ramos would be placed in investments through New York Life, and accordingly multiple victims referenced New York Life on the memo line of their investment checks,” the U.S. attorney said.
One victim attended a New York Life seminar, then subsequently met with Ramos at his office in Edison and ultimately invested in Invexperts “believing that it was associated with New York Life,” she said.
Ramos said told the victims that their investments were no-risk with fixed annual returns.
Instead of investing their money as he said he would, Ramos admitting using the money for other purposes, including to develop the now-closed Frisky Bull Barbecue restaurant in Elizabeth and to repay other investors.
Ramos took a deal from the government rather than go to trial, pleading guilty to one count of securities fraud in a videconference with U.S. District Judge Claire C. Cecchi in Newark. Cecchi scheduled sentencing for June 15, 2021.
Ramos has yet to resolve a civil securities fraud complaint filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Honig credited special agents of the FBI and postal inspectors of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service with the investigation leading to Tuesday’s guilty plea, secured by Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Macurdy of her Economic Crimes Unit.
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