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Investigators say $59 million scheme targeted Utah County

Greed will get you everytime. Why would you think that you would get 3-10% back each month. Utah is the capital of Ponzi schemes. Feel sorry for the people that lost money. The Lord was right when he told Joseph Smith you cannot always tell and evil person. We check the Holy Ghost at the door when we are talking with friends or fellow people and don't listen to those promptings and then when we find out we ask ourselves, "How could this happen?" It is called greed pure and simple.

Greed must be alive and well in Utah County.

Come on when someone offers you one hundred and twenty percent annual return on your money don't you think it is the least bit suspect?

It is an embassment to me that Utah county seems to be the Ponzi and multilevel capital of the world.

I guess thee is a reaon why Utah returned Bush/Cheney back to Washington with the highest approval rating in the Nation. Utah county was up there with the highest approval rating in Utah.

Ponzi schemes are a national crime and it has evolved because of government action to encourage all working americans to put their money in to wall street retirement accounts. Wall Street investing is also a ponzi scheme as many americans have found out the hard way, they lost it all in a matter of days.

Most american investors are illiterate with very little knowledge of the investing system. Investing is a gamble no matter how pretty and safe it may sound even if our government backs it.

Ponzi scheme investing is just a way to diverting peoples incomes in to Wall Street in very high risk ventures. The back lash is that government endorsement of ponzi scheme investing has given the american people a false sense of security to any scheme that comes along.

Before congress authorized ponzi retirement investing it was criminal to ask individuals to put their retirement in to investments. The birth of the SSA was a result of the 1930's similar schemes the robbed the american workers of their money and their retirement.

If the american people want to invest in retirement, make it tangible in savings or property.

You would think after scores of Utah County ponzi schemes over the years that people would catch on.

I am not a finacial expert, but I have some experience in this area.

Why is it that the very best and brightest, the very greediest Wall Street bankers you could ever meet - and I have - are happy to make a 10-15% return A YEAR?! If the very best and just one smidgen of an inch this side of legal only make 1%, why would anyone think they are going to make 10% a month?????

If this was so doable the only people doing it would be the Bernie Maddoff's of Wall Street. Sadly, there is no free lunch or goose that lays golden eggs. Warren Buffet has made billions 1% at a time.

In any case, I feel really bad for those loosing everything. There is a very reasonable explanation as to why Utah County is host to so many of these scams, large and small.

Why do we have state and federal agencies who are supposed to be tasked to authorize financial organizations to operate in states? They are only getting involved when the horse is out of the barn and the damage has been done. How can people title properties to dead people? How can 4 year olds purchase properties? I think we ought to completely reorganize the state and federal government watchdog organizations. Fanny Mae and Freddy Mac and all this phoney baloney that has put our country on the brink of financial disaster. I still blame gullible would be investors for getting sucked into get rich quick schemes. These people who hoodwink investors with ponzi schemes should be put away for minimums of 25 to 50 years with no parole possible. Chris Dodd, Barney Frank, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid are part of the problem as well. Don't we have the legal apparatus to deal with these crooks in the case of the ponzi schemes before they set up for business? We need a complete analysis of the laws and authorities in financial matters in this state. There has to be a reason that Utah is among the worst.

PT Barnum said it best.

What is wrong with people?

How can you steal someone's money like that? And how can you be dumb enough to think 3-10% per month is actually going to come your way?

This type of thing is a problem over and over if you put faith in feelings. The allure of making big money is most always a big uplifting rush of emotion.

Study things out for yourself, do NOT take other peoples word as reliable truth. If something does not make sense or seems too good to be true... THERE IS A REASON!

I have no simpathy for people who sought to get rich or make money off the back of the poor by investing in what they though were "payday loans".

Ponzi schemes are a horrible thing, but its hard to feel bad for people that are so greedy (and stupid) that they invest in these things. The general rule is that the higher the return the more risky the investment, and if someone offers you a guaranteed return of 10% a month then it's guaranteed to be a scam or, at a minimum, an extremely risky investment.

wow...mr. government interference, your comparison between ponzi schemes and wallstreet isn't even close. If anyone's illiterate about investing it is you. Even if your comparison were right, if everyone put their retirement in savings then the banks would just dump it back into wallstreet. If everyone put it in property then property values would be hyper-inflated. The key is diversification. If you were too heavily in one thing or another you probably got burned. Even if you were in a Ponzi scheme, if you diversified your portfolio then you'd have only lost a small fraction of your investments.

Government Interference and a different view......I have a really important question for both of you...HUH!!!!!!!

The mind is a really strange thing!!!!

Wall Street a ponzi scheme? sounds like you got greedy with your Investments! I know many people who have made money on their 401(K)and IRAs with DIVERSIFIED Mutual Funds AND other sound Investments. quit listening Glen Beck so much. If I would have listened to him in March I would have missed out on a 52% return on my money!

As a Financial Advisor, I do not feel sorry for people who believe in a 100% return and lose all their money. It amazing! A fool and his money are soon parted.

You should go and research what a Ponzi scheme is.

Who are the real greedy here?...not just the crooks...it is greed based investing. The folks have to know that when there is high return there must be high risk, yet they choose to do it anyway. Still, greed is at the heart of the crook and investor.

It is sad to see people taken advantage of, and sad to see yet another Ponzi Scheme dupe so many people of so much money. I offer a few rules to remember to avoid getting ripped off.

1. If it sounds to be good true it is.

2. If a friend, coworker, family member, or someone from church offers you a fabulous investment run the other way.

3. If someone offers a zero risk guaranteed return on investment don't invest. There is not, nor has there ever been such a thing.

4. Don't put all your eggs in one basket. Diversify what you invest in. Even the most seemingly safe investments could turn out to be frauds. If you have invested in many different areas it protects from the possibility of losing your life savings if you pick one bad apple.

5. I'm barely scratching the surface here. Think about what you invest in, educate yourself, and keep your eyes open.

Don't use church affiliation as a indicator that an investment is legitimate. People are often coned by church members who "lay in wait to deceive". It wasn't that long ago that a member of the First Council of the Seventy was associated with an investment scheme. Remember all the general authorities that were on board with Mark Hoffman and investing in his phony materials. Just because a person goes to church doesn't mean he can't be deceived or deceive. Do research and let the old noggin think it through.

Don't judge a financial planner by his church affiliation. This is why white collar crime is so rampant in Utah. All some people need to hear is that someone is a bishop, stake president or some other title. That means nothing to me. I know of a man in Bountiful Utah who conned another person out of a family business and farm selling him investments that weren't legitimate. This financial guru who marketed the investments had been a bishop.

sTEVE bLASER WAS THE NAME OF THE CON MAN IN THE ABOVE MENTIONED BLOG. hE HAS BEEN OPERATING UNDER THE RADAR FOR YEARS AND i WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW WHAT A WOLF HE REALLY IS. hE LIVES IN bOUNTIFUL uTAH.