Florida Attorney Pleads Guilty in Connection with $194 Million Hedge Fund Collapse

Won Sok Lee, 39, an attorney, formerly of Riviera Beach (Singer Island), Florida, and Irvine, California, plead guilty yesterday afternoon to one count of wire fraud in violation of Title 18 U.S.C. §1343 and one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud in violation of Title 18 U.S.C. §371. Lee is set to be sentenced on December 11, 2009 and faces a statutory maximum of 25 years in prison, a $500,000 fine, and restitution.

According to the FBI, Lee, along with John Kim and Yung Bae Kim, operated a massive investment fraud scheme that held approximately $194 million in investors' moneys. The scheme was a ponzi-type scheme, similar to Bernard Madoff's, where investors received "profits" out of money coming in from new investors. Lee had fled the country when charged late in 2006, but was located by federal authorities in South Korea in 2009 and extradited to the United States to face charges.

Lee admitted to a laundry list of unethical and illegal behavior, all of which can be found here at the FBI's official news story.