This Banker Scammed People Out Of More Than $70 Million Dollars, Caused The Collapse Of A Federally Insured Bank, Then Faked His Own Death

pressmaster - stock.adobe.com - illustrative purposes only, not the actual person
pressmaster - stock.adobe.com - illustrative purposes only, not the actual person

In 2014, a man named Aubrey Lee Price was sentenced to 30 years in prison for fraud, embezzlement, and other crimes that led to the loss of millions of dollars for dozens of his investors.

He also caused the collapse of a federally insured bank. He went to great lengths to avoid taking responsibility for his actions, even attempting to fake his own death.

Price was a devout Christian minister and a financial advisor who turned to a life of crime, taking advantage of his clients’ trust in him.

He got his start in the investment business to help earn money for mission trips overseas. Eventually, he started his own company, PFG.

Many of his clients were personal friends of his from Georgia, where he lived. Most of them were elderly and had entrusted him with their life savings, only to lose every cent they worked so hard for. He had about 100 significant investors.

In 2009, Price began making risky investment decisions with his clients’ money behind their backs. He hid those transactions from them by forging documents.

In 2010, he talked his clients into investing in a Georgia bank that was struggling to stay afloat. The following year, he realized that he wouldn’t be able to help the bank improve their situation and that his clients would lose a substantial amount of money.

So, he persuaded bank officials to invest some of the institutions in U.S. securities. He was then able to wire out $5 million to an account he claimed to have created with an investment firm in order to pay them back.

However, no such account with an investment firm existed. That $5 million was just the beginning of a scheme that would send chaos into the lives of many people.

pressmaster – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only, not the actual person

“Everyone believed Price was on the up and up,” said FBI Special Agent Ed Sutcliff. “He had investors, a solid track record, and there was no reason to doubt his ability or his honesty. And keep in mind that his PFG investors were getting bogus statements saying they were making money—and when they needed funds, he would provide them. It was the classic Ponzi scheme.”

Ultimately, Price scammed people out of a total of more than $70 million and contributed to the bank’s failure.

In 2012, Price knew he was about to get caught, so he faked his own death by appearing to jump off a boat in Key West, Florida.

He left behind suicide notes for his wife and four children. In the letters, he admitted to defrauding a bank and listed several investors he had scammed.

Then, he fled to Mexico. Later, he went to Florida, where he grew, sold, and used marijuana. He took a bunch of other drugs as well, including cocaine, and even got addicted to Adderall. He also sometimes served as a bodyguard.

The Coast Guard searched for his body but couldn’t find it. He was presumed dead by everyone, including his family and a judge.

But FBI agents suspected that he might still be alive. During a routine traffic stop a year later, Price was arrested after presenting a fake ID in Brunswick, Georgia.

He pled guilty to one count each of bank fraud, wire fraud, and securities fraud, resulting in a maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison.

He was also sentenced to a 5-year term of supervised release and was ordered to pay restitution to his victims.

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Emily  Chan is a writer who covers lifestyle and news content. She graduated from Michigan State University with a ... More about Emily Chan

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