The Boston Boat Ponzi Scheme - A Sunday Tale

There actually is a Ponzi scheme at the end of this *

It was 2021, and after a very successful year with my yacht management business, along with setting records for charters in Boston, I had been on the Shipshape platform for half a year, which I was building. I was still fairly new to the technology scene, but by that point, I had a clear understanding of the difficulty involved in actually achieving anything.

A significant portion of the work I was doing involved data collection, which often required me to work from 6 AM to midnight building out the list.

An Unexpected Neighbor

There was a guy who owned a beat-up 60ft powerboat that he had lived on with his family for nearly 15 years. He put the boat on the market for $8,000, which should give you an idea of how rundown it was.

The boat was acquired and moved to the dock across from mine. There was an old salt that I often saw working on it. I had brief conversations with him, and he mentioned that the boat was acquired for charters. At this point, I had a bit of an ego.

There were a few times when they took the boat out for charter with only one engine working, which I considered extreme negligence. I made my thoughts known, especially since every time they took the boat out or brought it back in, they would crash into docks or other boats.

One day, the old salt asked me what I was doing, and he told me that the guy who actually owned the boat was just like me and into boating technology. My response was always, "There ain't no one like me."

Regardless, he gave my contact information to this guy.

The Call

About a week later, I received a call from the guy who owned the boat. He told me he was building an app that could do it all—charters, rentals, community, service, navigation, and more. He compared his app to the Waze car app.

He pushed for a meeting to hear what I was doing and enticed me with the idea of bringing in a private chef for our conversation, which I agreed to.

The Google Search

I did my research, and his name was different from what I knew him by, although it could have been an abbreviation. He wasn't American and had many interviews online, where he was highlighted as an innovator and leader. In some ways, it seemed like he was acting as a venture capitalist, bringing in businesses and attracting investors…. What I needed.

The Meeting

We met on the boat across from me. It had undergone some aesthetic repairs over time, so although it wasn't a great boat, it started to look okay. He also brought in a private chef, which surprised me. The chef really did a fantastic job. I thought to myself, "Is this what success is supposed to look like? Will I one day have a private chef as well?"

He was roughly my age, but he held himself and spoke in a way that exuded confidence. As we drank, he became even more confident, likely noticing that I agreed with a lot of what he said.

He came at me with the idea that what I was doing was insignificant, claiming that he could call his coders and have them build the app I'd been working on for half a year in just a few hours. I was a little against that, considering there was a lot more that went into it, including building a keyword tree and data collection. Nonetheless, I listened, although I was concerned because his confidence was on another level.

It was strange, however, when I commented that if he had so much money, why didn't he just fix the engine of the boat.

His Slip Up

Between the five-course meal, him calling my work insignificant, and propping himself up as a great forward-thinking leader, he mentioned that he had partnered with the U.S. Coast Guard. That was the moment when the record skipped for me.

At this point, I had been fighting the Coast Guard for a while. They hadn't responded to my three FOIA requests, so I brought in a Congressman to speak on my behalf. This was followed by another FOIA request and Homeland Security demanding fingerprints from all the team members, which led to me bringing in lawyers. It was a battle, so I found what he said to be impossible. The Coast Guard doesn't just work with anyone, and the likelihood of them being okay with working with a foreigner seemed unbelievable.

I immediately called him out, saying that couldn't be true. He then tried to defend himself by saying that he "gets people to work together," trying to avoid the topic, but I didn't let up. His arguments sounded fake.

After the Meeting

Our meal was done, and he had important business matters to attend to, so we said our farewells. However, I couldn't shake this strange feeling. Not only had he threatened me with his comments that he could replicate what I'd done in a day, but his claims about the Coast Guard didn't seem true.

When I was back on my boat, I called my teammates, who knew I was meeting with this guy. I told them I didn't trust him, that I wouldn't deal with him again, and that he was dangerous.

A Few Months Later

On the cover of the Boston Herald, his face appeared with the headline "Serial Entrepreneur"—a play on "serial killer." He had been running a Ponzi scheme, collecting money from investors, paying off the older ones, and never actually investing in any businesses. His confidence had led people to believe him for a long time, as he pitched investing with him as being of little to no risk.

Authorities found that he never funneled the money to the appropriate companies he pitched. Instead, he used a large chunk of the funds to repay previous investors and also used over $200,000 in stolen funds to buy a powerboat, according to the Department of Justice. Subsequent investigations found that he largely lied about his past success as an entrepreneur and investor. Unfortunately, investors trusted him based on his misrepresentations about his company, his investment pitches, and his entrepreneurial history.

Authorities reported that there were over 20 victims who invested over $1.8 million with him. He was sentenced to 21 months in prison.

Conclusion

This shocking revelation served as a reminder that confidence alone is not a reliable indicator of trustworthiness. It's important to carefully evaluate any potential business partners or investment opportunities and to remain vigilant, especially when something seems too good to be true.

P.S my email is [email protected]