What is Zach Avery's net worth? Inside actor's $6M mansion, $100K Las Vegas trips and $690M Ponzi scheme
American actor Zack Avery aka Zachary Horwitz is now facing the possibility of spending the next 20 years in prison if convicted for wire fraud. He was reportedly the mastermind behind a Ponzi scheme that duped at least 200 investors of a whopping $227M. He was arrested by FBI agents on Tuesday, April 6.
While the whole 'film investment' scheme was an elaborate ruse for pumping money from investors, Avery bought himself a lot of goodies, including a $6M house. Here's a look at the Ponzi scheme and his lavish lifestyle.
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The Ponzi scheme
The actor, who was reportedly finding it difficult in showbiz, reportedly told investors that his company 1inMM Capital would buy film distribution rights and license them to Netflix and HBO, when in reality, he had "no business relationship with either company", according to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Horwitz had claimed the investors' money would be "used for buying rights to films that HBO and Netflix had signed on to distribute internationally, particularly in Latin America".
The US Attorney's Office for the Central District of California said in a statement that the 34-year-old actor reportedly operated the company as a Ponzi scheme, using money from new investors to pay older ones. Horwitz provided promotional material, including annual reports, as well as fabricated agreements and emails regarding the purported deals with HBO and Netflix. That annual report also included a 'library snapshot' of films his company had "distributed" via licensing. The SEC said that Avery's scheme had raised more than $690M. According to The Department of Justice, it began in 2015 and $227M put in by victims is yet to be repaid.
'A small-time actor'
The Los Angeles Times described Avery as "a small-time actor" who failed to find success as an actor. He starred in the 2020 film 'Last Moment of Clarity'. Other films to his credit are 'Fury', 'Farming', 'Curvature', 'The White Crow', and some short films such as 'Shifter' and 'The Laughing Man'.
What is Zach Avery's net worth?
According to the latest reports, Avery allegedly used money from the Ponzi scheme to fund a lavish lifestyle. Authorities revealed that this lifestyle included $100,000 trips to Las Vegas, payment of a $1.8M American Express bill and paying a celebrity interior designer. He has also been accused of allegedly using some of the money to purchase his $6M mansion.
Authorities added that the Ponzi scheme had started in 2015 and Horwitz had promised the investors that they would get more than 35 per cent in return. To establish his legitimacy, "Horwitz provided investors with fake license agreements, as well as fake distribution agreements with Netflix and HBO, all of which contained forged or fictional signatures," the US Attorney's Office said.
The FBI said that Avery's company failed to make more than 160 payments. According to the latest reports, the FBI said its largest investor, JJMT Capital, LLC, of Chicago, is owed more than $160M in principal and about $59M in investment profits.