‘Swiss banker’ was really Hawaii man using fake accent to swindle $2 million, feds say

A Hawaii man faces federal charges after being accused of posing as a Swiss banker, complete with a fake accent, to pull off a $2 million swindle, prosecutors reported.

The 40-year-old man, arrested Feb. 11 in California, worked with a 46-year-old man and a 52-year-old woman to solicit upfront payments from people in Hawaii for purported investments that were never made, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Hawaii said in a news release.

As part of the scheme, the man presented himself as Xavier Carter, a Swiss banker, and used a fake accent, prosecutors said.

Instead of investing the payments, the three used them for personal expenses, including credit card bills, rent and entertainment expenses, the release said.

They only returned $163,000 of the $2.5 million raised for the fake investments, in part using money paid in by other bamboozled “investors,” prosecutors said.

The three are charged with conspiracy and wire fraud. Two also face charges of money laundering.

This story was originally published February 16, 2022 at 8:48 AM with the headline "‘Swiss banker’ was really Hawaii man using fake accent to swindle $2 million, feds say."