A California advisor who once enticed investors to build wealth “God’s way” was sentenced to 14 years in prison by a federal court judge in Los Angeles yesterday for luring investors into fraudulent real estate investments that lost $12 million for his clients.
Paul Ricky Mata, 58, of Oceanside, pled guilty in July to 17 felonies, including 11 counts of mail fraud and three counts of wire fraud, as well as single counts of false statements and concealing assets in bankruptcy. Mata was also ordered to pay more than $12.5 million in restitution to clients by U.S. District Court Judge R. Gary Klausner.
Mata invited investors to put money in several businesses he controlled from August 2008 to September 2015. according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. He was the founder of businesses such as Logos Wealth Advisors, Logos Lifetime Enterprises, Logos Real Estate Holdings and Secured Capital.
In his fraudulent solicitation of some $14.5 million from investors, Mata told them, among other things, that money in Secured Capital would yield a guaranteed 5% to 10% return, when in fact, said prosecutors, there was a real risk of loss.
Secured Capital, he told clients, was a real estate investment program placing money in government-backed tax liens,…
