Tulare County man sentenced to federal prison for cow poop scheme
A 66-year-old Tulare County man was sentenced to six years in prison for running a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme, telling investors he could turn cow manure into green energy using anaerobic digesters.
For roughly five years, Ray Brewer stole $8.7 million from investors in Fresno, Kern, Kings, and Tulare counties, as well as other counties in California and Idaho, according to U.S. Attorney Phillip Talbert announced.
When Brewer’s investors realized they'd been lied to and sought legal action, he moved to Montana and took on a new identity.
During his arrest, Brewer told law enforcement officers they "had the wrong man." He also claimed to have been in the Navy, and once saved several soldiers during a fire by blocking the flames with his body so that they could escape.
Brewer has since admitted that he lied to officers, which is also a crime.
The green scheme
Anaerobic digesters are large machines that use microorganisms to break down biodegradable material and turn it into methane. The methane can then be sold on the open market as green energy, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
The methane also produces Renewable Energy Credits (REC), which are then purchased by companies to meet green energy regulatory requirements.
The investors were supposed to receive 66% of all net profits as well as tax incentives.
Brewer would take investors on tours of dairies where he said that he was going to build the digesters and sent them forged lease agreements with the dairy owners. He also sent the investors altered agreements with banks that made it appear as though he had millions of dollars in loans to build the digesters, according to investigators.
Investors recieved forged contracts with multinational companies that made it appear as though he had secured revenue streams. Brewer also sent the investors fake pictures of the digesters under construction.
When Brewer would get the victim's investment, he'd transferred the money to different bank accounts under the names of entities, family members, and an alias.
When questioned by investors, Brewer would tell them the digesters were being built and sent fake documents to backup his lies, U.S. Attorney's said. In some instances, Brewer would refund investors all or some of their money. However, those refunds were coming from other investors' money. Those investors never gave Brewer permission to use their money in that way.
This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: Cow manure Ponzi scheme lands Tulare County man in federal prison
