US Man Indicted For Investment Fraud Scheme Targeting Haitian Community in NY, FL, and GA

NEW YORK, New York – New York Attorney General, Letitia James,  says a Florida resident has been arrested and indicted for allegedly operating a three-year securities fraud scheme that targeted the Haitian community in New York, Florida and Georgia.

James said that Marc Henry Menard is accused of stealing more than US$600,000 from 11 investors.

“Menard, who is not registered to offer or sell securities, solicited unsuspecting individuals to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars, claiming that he was a highly successful trader and could generate returns of up to 20 per cent per month,” James told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC).

“Instead, he allegedly transferred investors’ money into his personal trading account, where he sustained staggering losses from high-risk trading,” she added.

The New York Attorney General said Menard also used his investors’ money to pay his personal expenses, make expensive purchases on travel and luxury goods, and repay prior investors.

Menard was charged in a 24-count indictment with multiple counts of Grand Larceny and Securities Fraud, as well as Falsifying Business Records and Scheme to Defraud.

“Marc Henry Menard took advantage of Haitian New Yorkers, lied to them about his experience as a successful trader, and swindled hard-working people out of hundreds of thousands of dollars,” said James.

“Menard treated himself to luxury vacations and shopping trips at his victims’ expense, and now we are bringing him to justice. I encourage all New Yorkers to take caution when making investments and report any suspicious offers to my office,” she urged.

James said an investigation led by the Office of the Attorney General’s (OAG) Criminal Enforcement and Financial Crimes Bureau (CEFC) revealed that beginning in July 2020 and continuing through June 2023, Menard allegedly solicited members of the Haitian community to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars into his company, Marcotech LLC.

She said Menard targeted Haitians in Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland, and Queens Counties in New York, as well as Florida and Georgia and that he promised investors monthly returns of between 12 and 20 per cent, and promised higher percentages if they recruited additional individuals to invest.

In order to solicit investments, the New York Attorney General said Menard allegedly represented to investors that he was an experienced and highly successful trader of stocks and cryptocurrencies.

She said after soliciting investments,  Menard allegedly deposited a portion of investors’ money into his own personal trading accounts.

James said he then used these funds to engage in risky trading options, including high-risk day trading – a short-term investment strategy that involves buying and selling stock on the same day – and options trading, which resulted in losses totaling over US$670,000 between July 2021 and October 2022.

The New York Attorney General said Menard also allegedly used hundreds of thousands of investors’ dollars to repay prior investors and for personal expenditures.

She said he allegedly spent over US$100,000 on trips to Turkey, Puerto Rico, and Disney World, a 2021 Mercedes-Benz and a 2022 BMW, and purchases at luxury retailers such as Louis Vuitton and Gucci.

To continue his alleged scheme, James said Menard showed investors a fake ATM receipt that reflected a bank account balance of over eight million US dollars, and a fake trading screen showing a net account value of over one miion US dollars.

“Menard’s investors relied on these false statements, believing they were earning significant profits, and continued to invest,” James said, adding that the OAG’s investigation revealed that, in reality, between July 2021 and October 2022, the highest net value of Menard’s trading account was US$240,000, and the highest balance of Menard’s bank account was US$301,000.

The OAG’s 24-count indictment – unsealed on Monday in Nassau County Supreme Court – charges Menard with two counts of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree (a class C felony), nine counts of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree (a class D felony), 12 counts of Securities Fraud under the Martin Act (a class E felony), one count of Falsifying Business Records in the First Degree (a class E felony) and one count of Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree (a class E felony).

The New York Attorney General said Menard was arrested in Sunrise, Florida and arraigned on Monday before Judge Tammy Robbins in Nassau Supreme Court. He was released with weekly reporting, and was required to surrender his passport and not travel outside New York and Florida.

If convicted, James said Menard faces a maximum sentence of up to five to 15 years in prison.