Man stole $9M using cow manure scheme in Fresno, Valley, DOJ says. He’s been sentenced
A Porterville man convicted of stealing almost $9 million through a fraudulent cow manure scheme in Fresno and other counties was sentenced Monday, according to federal prosecutors.
Ray Brewer, 66, was sentenced to six years and nine months in prison, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a news release. He pleaded guilty in February.
Brewer ran the $8.75 million scheme in Fresno, Kern, Kings and Tulare counties, and purported to turn cow manure into green energy using anaerobic digesters on dairies.
He used a fake photo to lure investors, the DOJ said.
Once his investors caught on, Brewer moved to Sheridan, Montana and assumed a new identity, the DOJ said.
Brewer promised investors profits from Renewable Energy Credits created by the digesters, along with tax credits from installing the machines, which turn biodegradable material into methane.
He used forged bank statement and contracts to appear to have millions in loans and agreements with multinational companies, the DOJ said.
He later sent investors fake construction schedules and invoices for project-related costs, fake power generation reports, all to make it seem like the business was progressing.
Court records show he actually transferred the investors’ money into multiple other bank accounts opened in the names of different entities, under the names of family members and an alias. He eventually used that money to buy two 10-plus-acre plots of land, a 3,700-square-foot custom home and new Dodge Ram truck.
Brewer also used money from newer investors to give as refunds to older investors, as a way to keep the scheme going, which is common in a Ponzi scheme.
