Zachary Joseph Horwitzn was on Tuesday arrested for running a $227 million Ponzi scheme. The scheme promised non-existence and fraudulent film rights investments. The 34-year old film and TV actor was taken into police custody by FBI agents specially assigned to investigate fraud charges. That’s according to California’s Central District U.S. Attorney’s Office. The Actor, who goes by the name Zach Avery, may face a penalty of 20 years in jail.
Horwitz is accused of soliciting investments for 1inMM Capital LLC, which is one of his companies. According to the criminal complaint, he claimed that he would use the funds to acquire films’ regional distribution rights. He would also license the rights to various online platforms like HBO and Netflix. The state accuses Horwitz of lying to investors that the listed rights were explicitly for the films that the streaming companies had consented to distribute abroad. The particular region that would receive the streaming includes Latin America. The complaint alleged that the Ponzi scheme started in 2015 and has accumulated to a staggering value of $227 million.
Horwitz provided promotional content to investors with claims that 1inMM Capital will offer secure investments. According to an affidavit, the victims received confirmation from their outputs with indications that their desire to rights acquisition to any title was purchased before releasing the film’s funds. The prosecution said that Horwitz also provided the investors with counterfeit licenses and distribution agreements with HBO and Netflix and HBO. All the deals contained fictional signatures. All the funds were used to repay earlier investors and fund Mr. Horwitz’s luxurious lifestyle. The Actor purchased a $6 million residence in Beverlywood. According to the criminal complaint, investors began lodging complaints in 2019 when 1inMM Capital defaulted on promissory notes.
When the complaints were lodged, Mr. Horwitz didn’t stop the scheme. Instead, he went ahead to forward dummy correspondence from HBO and Netflix with excuses why the funds were not available. He also used counterfeit employee’s signatures from both companies to justify his deeds. Both HBO and Netflix have denied having engaged in any business dealings with Zachary Joseph Horwitz and his company, 1inMM Capital. The Actor admitted in front of a U.S Magistrate Judge that he fully understand the charge placed before him during a virtual hearing from a Los Angeles jail where he is confined. Los Angeles Times reported that the Judge had set Horwitz’s bond at $1 million. The Actor is being represented by attorney Anthony Pacheco, who we could not reach for comment.