The founder of the local restaurant chain Pinocchios accused of fraud was found guilty on all counts on Friday.
Annie Vick, 63, was found guilty on eight counts of securities fraud for making untrue statements. Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 21.
Vick, founder of the Pinocchios restaurant chain in northern Colorado, burst into tears after the jury deliberations were read. She is being held without bail until the sentencing hearing and was led out of the courtroom in handcuffs.
Assistant Attorney General Joseph Wasserman said that while Vick worked to present herself as a successful businesswoman who was an excellent trader, she was not transparent about her trading to her investors. He reiterated that Vick never told investors that she was not licensed to sell securities, was commingling investors’ money into her personal and restaurant accounts nor that she was using…
Insurance fraud involves making false or exaggerated claims to an insurance provider.
- Hard Fraud: Someone deliberately causes a loss (e.g., setting fire to a warehouse or staging a car accident) specifically to collect a payout.
- Soft Fraud: More common and often viewed as “victimless” by the perpetrator. It involves exaggerating a legitimate claim, such as overstating the value of stolen items in a home burglary to cover the deductible.