Investment adviser to be sentenced in April for Ponzi scheme

GREENBELT, Md. – A federal judge has scheduled a sentencing hearing next year for a Maryland investment adviser convicted of defrauding investors out of millions of dollars to finance her lavish lifestyle.

A jury convicted 56-year-old Dawn Bennett last week of charges including securities fraud, wire fraud and bank fraud. On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis set Bennett’s sentencing hearing for April 8, 2019.

A prosecutor said Bennett used investors’ money to pay more than $800,000 for prayers by Hindu priests in India in a desperate attempt to ward off federal investigators. The FBI said agents also found evidence in Bennett’s home that she cast “hoodoo” spells to stymie government attorneys investigating her Ponzi scheme.

Authorities said Bennett raised more than $20 million from at least 46 investors in her sportswear company.