A Florida man's luxurious lies: The $380M Ponzi scheme that fooled thousands

A man from Florida, Todd Burkhalter, admitted to running a giant Ponzi scheme, the largest in Georgia's history. He tricked over 2, 000 people out of $380 million between 2020 and 2024. This money funded his fancy lifestyle, including a yacht, a fancy condo in Mexico, and private jets. Burkhalter started a company called Drive Planning LLC. He promised investors easy money through fake real estate deals. He lied about big returns and said investments were safe. But it was all a scam. He made up fake documents to trick people.He spent the stolen money on luxury items. A $2 million yacht, a $2. 1 million condo, and expensive cars. He also spent money on travel, clothes, and even paid off his ex-wife's legal fees. The SEC started investigating in 2024, but Burkhalter kept scamming people until September that year. Now, he might go to prison for 17 and a half years. His former partner, David Bradford, also admitted to fraud and will be sentenced soon. This story shows how greed can lead to crime. It's a reminder to be careful with investments and to question promises that seem too good to be true.