ST. GEORGE — A Washington City man was sentenced last week to 15 years in prison for defrauding more than 200 people of $89 million, which he spent on luxury cars, a plane and other extravagant expenses.
Matthew Shane Perkins, 47, posed as a “savant” stock trader, convincing investors to trust him as he claimed he was a “brilliant trader who consistently beat the market and rarely suffered losing days,” a sentencing memorandum states.
In total, he obtained about $89 million from the approximately 200 investors between August 2023 and November 2025, the charges said. He conducted the scheme through operating the business Forged Oak LLC, where he made a business arrangement with RentDue Capital who recruited investors to three separate funds of social media, the company’s website and meetings with investors, according to the charges.
“When RentDue Capital received investors’ money, the…
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