WASHINGTON —A Los Angeles actor has been the mastermind of a $ 690 million Ponzi scheme that promises investors who thought their money would fund distribution rights for movies that would be on HBO and Netflix, according to authorities.
Zachary Joseph Horwitz, who acted as actor through Zach Avery, was arrested on Monday and charged with wire fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles. The Securities and Exchange Commission has also sued Horwitz and its firm, 1inMM Capital LLC, in civil court over the alleged scam, which he said involves an extensive plan to sell film license rights, primarily in Latin American markets. to depict.
According to Horwitz’s LinkedIn profile, he is the managing partner of 1inMM. He did not respond to a request for comment sent via LinkedIn. In the court report, no lawyer was named for him on Wednesday.
The 34-year-old actor has a profile on IMDb, the online film database, where he is credited for roles in a handful of low-budget films. His most recent credits include a film that has yet to be released, titled “Gateway,” starring Olivia Munn and Frank Grillo. The Hollywood studio Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. ‘s specialty company Grindstone Entertainment is listed as distributor.
Netflix declined to comment. HBO and Lions Gate did not immediately respond to requests for comment.