CALIFORNIA — Andrew B. Powers, 45, was sentenced on Wednesday, July 15 to over 12 years in prison for a loss of $25 million through investment fraud and illegal money laundering scheme.
According to the prosecutors, Powers was found guilty of three counts of wire fraud, one count of mail fraud and two counts of unlawful monetary transaction. He was arrested on June 6, 2019 and indicted July 30, 2019.
“Andrew B. Powers stole $25 million from nearly 60 people,” stated G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. “Powers is a con man of the worst sort. His fraud was long-running, well-organized, and relentless. He was motivated by greed and the desire to appear successful, when in fact, he intentionally stole from and deceived his victims for his own self benefit.”
Powers is a former resident of Virginia, where in 2006 he began a company called CommuniClique, an application that allowed businesses to communicate electronically within their businesses and with clients. Powers claimed yearly revenues of around $2 million by 2009 and $180 million by 2019.
Throughout the business he claimed he had numerous large corporate clients, but in actuality, he had no revenues or any large corporate clients. He also allegedly hired technical staff to authenticate his company further. In August 2018, as the Virginia State Corporation Commission prohibited from soliciting more investments in Virginia, Powers moved his investment scheme to Pacific Palisades, California. Within a year, he had defrauded investors of nearly $25 million. He utilized the income and rented a mansion in Palisades overlooking the Pacific Ocean for $35,000 per month.
