TROY, Ohio (WDTN) – A Piqua man has pleaded no contest to 16 charges after he was accused of scamming Ohio investors.
According to the Ohio Department of Commerce, 56-year-old Scott Fries was accused of telling nine Ohio investors that he would place their funds in an investment account. Instead, he placed the funds into his personal accounts and used the money for personal expenses and to pay a prior investor.
This fraudulent scheme continued for just over six years from March 2014 until June 2020.
In November of 2021, Fries was indicted on 44 felony counts including the following:
- One count engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity
- Seven counts of misrepresentations in the sale of securities
- Seven counts of securities fraud
- Nine counts of providing false account statements
- Seven counts of fraudulent and deceptive conduct as an investment adviser representative
- Eight counts of grand theft
- Four counts of theft from a person in a protected class (elderly), and
- One count of aggravated theft.
On Monday, Oct. 17, Fries pleaded no contest to 16 felony charges including securities fraud, deceptive conduct, grand theft, and engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, as well as several other charges.
At this time a sentencing date has not yet been set.
