Posted on: Tuesday, February 24, 2004

Money scam promoter gets 20-year sentence

By David Waite
Advertiser Courts Writer

A La'ie woman who was accused of being a chief promoter of a Ponzi scheme that bilked about 5,000 investors from Hawai'i, American Samoa, Japan and the Mainland out of more than $66 million was sentenced in federal court yesterday to nearly 20 years in jail.

U.S. District Judge Manuel Real, who presided over a jury-waived retrial of Montez Ottley, found her guilty in December of 14 criminal counts including mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering and conspiracy.

A jury returned a guilty verdict against Ottley in February 2003. However, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ordered a new trial in June, saying Real should have allowed Ottley, 57, to serve as her own counsel at the first trial. Ottley served as her own lawyer during the retrial.

Her bogus program promised an 8 percent profit in 13 weeks in exchange for a minimum investment of $1,000.

Tom Hayes, who has often served as a court appointed trustee in bankruptcy cases, was assigned by the court in Ottley's case to recover what he could for people victimized by the investment scheme. Hayes can be reached at 536-6967.