1 00:00:02,640 --> 00:00:09,140 In this episode of American Greed, radio host Dawn Bennett is a famous financial 2 00:00:09,140 --> 00:00:14,440 advisor. This is a time period to control your own financial destiny. Who 3 00:00:14,440 --> 00:00:19,580 listeners and clients her sporty online startup is the next big thing. 4 00:00:19,820 --> 00:00:21,860 Think like Lululemon on steroids. 5 00:00:22,520 --> 00:00:25,420 To investors, she claims outrageous profits. 6 00:00:26,080 --> 00:00:27,940 That $3 million is worth over $6 million. 7 00:00:28,400 --> 00:00:33,180 You're crazy to fuck with it. But the feds say she's running a $20 million 8 00:00:33,860 --> 00:00:37,060 You don't steal $20 million without having a certain amount of charm. 9 00:00:37,320 --> 00:00:42,140 She was spending millions upon millions of dollars on expenses that exclusively 10 00:00:42,140 --> 00:00:43,140 benefited herself. 11 00:00:43,780 --> 00:00:49,420 And when investigators close in, she conjures supernatural forces to save 12 00:00:49,420 --> 00:00:54,310 herself. We can only imagine that Ms. Bennett cast this spell dozens of times. 13 00:00:54,570 --> 00:00:59,470 Usually situations aren't that dire. Usually people don't let them get that 14 00:00:59,750 --> 00:01:01,450 Oh, my God. 15 00:01:20,590 --> 00:01:26,350 In the Tony, D .C. suburb of Chevy Chase, Maryland, FBI agents executing a 16 00:01:26,350 --> 00:01:31,330 search warrant raid two luxury penthouses on August 2, 2017. 17 00:01:32,670 --> 00:01:36,970 They're looking for evidence of a financial fraud that's cost dozens of 18 00:01:36,970 --> 00:01:39,110 investors $20 million. 19 00:01:40,550 --> 00:01:45,390 In keeping with their suspicions, they uncover incredible spending. 20 00:01:47,150 --> 00:01:50,910 It looked like I was walking into the ladies' department at Neiman Marcus. 21 00:01:51,670 --> 00:01:58,590 There was an entire large closet full of high -end ladies' shoes, Noah Blahnik, 22 00:01:58,690 --> 00:02:00,510 Jimmy Choo, Christian Louboutin. 23 00:02:01,970 --> 00:02:07,450 But what they find in two freezers is beyond anything they could have 24 00:02:07,910 --> 00:02:09,630 We found some strange things. 25 00:02:11,150 --> 00:02:16,070 That was the only time in my career at the FBI that I've come across anything. 26 00:02:16,670 --> 00:02:18,210 even remotely close to that. 27 00:02:21,930 --> 00:02:27,510 Their sinister discoveries suggest the private desperation and epic downfall of 28 00:02:27,510 --> 00:02:30,770 a woman who was once a darling of Wall Street. 29 00:02:31,630 --> 00:02:35,950 We run a portfolio that's balanced, and we do it at 30 % less risk than the S andP 30 00:02:35,950 --> 00:02:42,770 500, and we're up over 25%. In the late 2000s, Dawn Bennett. 31 00:02:43,180 --> 00:02:48,640 CEO of Bennett Group Financial Services appears to be the poster child for 32 00:02:48,640 --> 00:02:55,360 success. She was very high profile. She knew how to use the media to 33 00:02:55,360 --> 00:03:02,120 get on programs and get quoted in publications. She was seen as somebody 34 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:03,940 really had figured it out. 35 00:03:04,440 --> 00:03:10,020 An accomplished woman in a male -dominated world, Bennett commands 36 00:03:10,890 --> 00:03:14,570 With TV appearances and her very own weekly radio show. 37 00:03:16,650 --> 00:03:19,950 Hi, everybody. This is Dawn Bennett. Welcome to Financial Mythbusting. 38 00:03:20,210 --> 00:03:27,190 Dawn Bennett's radio show, Financial Mythbusting, is one of these programs 39 00:03:27,190 --> 00:03:30,770 where you buy the airtime. They tended to be a little bit political sometimes. 40 00:03:30,970 --> 00:03:33,510 She was, I think, leaned a little bit to the right. 41 00:03:34,310 --> 00:03:39,950 Bennett began her career in 1987, working at different firms, including 42 00:03:39,950 --> 00:03:44,830 Mason, before launching her own advisory business, Bennett Group Financial 43 00:03:44,830 --> 00:03:46,770 Services, in 2006. 44 00:03:48,190 --> 00:03:54,590 This former client, we'll call Carl, who asked to be filmed in shadow, hires her 45 00:03:54,590 --> 00:03:58,430 in 1995 after a recommendation from his aunt. 46 00:03:58,950 --> 00:04:01,790 Don's very outgoing, very intelligent. 47 00:04:02,010 --> 00:04:04,450 We've talked for a long time about just anything. 48 00:04:05,420 --> 00:04:10,900 With consistently positive results, he stays with her when she goes out on her 49 00:04:10,900 --> 00:04:16,320 own. The whole time I was with her, we were buying stocks, buying mutual funds, 50 00:04:16,459 --> 00:04:19,440 buying platinum, buying gold, selling stuff as needed. 51 00:04:20,360 --> 00:04:23,840 Bennett's Washington, D .C. firm grows with lightning speed. 52 00:04:24,460 --> 00:04:31,400 And in 2009, with a purported $1 .1 billion under management, financial 53 00:04:31,400 --> 00:04:34,280 Barron's names her number five on its list. 54 00:04:34,640 --> 00:04:36,980 of the top 100 female advisors. 55 00:04:37,400 --> 00:04:41,120 And later that year, number 26 overall. 56 00:04:42,080 --> 00:04:47,060 Part of the Barron's list criteria was assets under management. It's not their 57 00:04:47,060 --> 00:04:50,460 only criteria, but it's one of the criteria to get on their list. 58 00:04:51,560 --> 00:04:53,500 Bennett revels in the rankings. 59 00:04:54,040 --> 00:04:59,220 In a press release, Bennett says, it's an honor to be chosen among the 60 00:04:59,220 --> 00:05:01,120 of financial advisors in the country. 61 00:05:01,610 --> 00:05:04,890 by such a prestigious financial magazine as Barron's. 62 00:05:05,750 --> 00:05:10,330 That honor is one that Bennett will repeatedly use to make both existing and 63 00:05:10,330 --> 00:05:14,750 potential clients believe that they're in the hands of one of the industry's 64 00:05:14,750 --> 00:05:15,750 best. 65 00:05:16,450 --> 00:05:19,450 She would always call me with how wonderful she was. 66 00:05:20,110 --> 00:05:25,530 I'm number 13 in the country, top financial advisors, top female, top 67 00:05:25,530 --> 00:05:30,070 that. And that's part of the thing that led me to trust her. 68 00:05:30,860 --> 00:05:33,420 is that I wasn't her only investor. 69 00:05:34,900 --> 00:05:40,160 Former model and television personality Steve Santagotti is the author of the 70 00:05:40,160 --> 00:05:42,540 New York Times bestseller, The Manual. 71 00:05:43,160 --> 00:05:49,260 A true bad boy explains how men think, date, and mate, and what women can do to 72 00:05:49,260 --> 00:05:50,360 come out on top. 73 00:05:50,960 --> 00:05:57,140 The guy always pays for the first date. That is true as ever. Oh, come on. Any 74 00:05:57,140 --> 00:06:01,060 guy that doesn't should be slapped around. You can get a Ph .D. in 75 00:06:01,220 --> 00:06:05,780 and you'll never know what I know about women by actually living it and by doing 76 00:06:05,780 --> 00:06:06,780 it, so to speak. 77 00:06:07,540 --> 00:06:12,220 After the publication of his book, Santagati becomes well -known as a 78 00:06:12,220 --> 00:06:15,300 relationship expert who makes frequent appearances. 79 00:06:16,070 --> 00:06:19,010 Sharing his decidedly male perspective. 80 00:06:19,350 --> 00:06:24,210 That's a really scary thing, especially for men, because we have to be lulled 81 00:06:24,210 --> 00:06:26,290 into commitment. You're not going to think we have commitment phobia, are 82 00:06:26,290 --> 00:06:28,090 No, not at all. I would never say that on TV. 83 00:06:28,290 --> 00:06:33,850 But before his book is published, he has a chance encounter in the lobby of a 84 00:06:33,850 --> 00:06:38,610 publicist's office with Dawn Bennett, who's just starting out on her own. 85 00:06:39,430 --> 00:06:41,930 Dawn Bennett's in there. She's very buttoned up. 86 00:06:42,430 --> 00:06:44,070 And, of course, we start talking. 87 00:06:44,600 --> 00:06:47,560 And I asked her what she does, and she said she's a financial advisor. 88 00:06:47,820 --> 00:06:50,240 So I started asking her questions. She goes, well, I'm starting my own thing. 89 00:06:51,920 --> 00:06:56,840 Santagati says he expresses interest in having Bennett manage his funds, but 90 00:06:56,840 --> 00:06:59,820 knows he probably doesn't have enough capital. 91 00:07:00,380 --> 00:07:01,580 She goes, no, I'll take you on. 92 00:07:01,900 --> 00:07:05,180 She goes, absolutely, because you're just, you know, I'm just starting, and 93 00:07:05,180 --> 00:07:07,680 normally you're right, a million dollars is the least we'll take. 94 00:07:08,240 --> 00:07:11,740 My whole relationship with Don Bennett started off with me believing she... 95 00:07:12,140 --> 00:07:17,400 was doing me a favor by taking in such a small fry that all her investors were 96 00:07:17,400 --> 00:07:21,960 big, smart, multi -multi -millionaires, and that I was just a little guy that 97 00:07:21,960 --> 00:07:22,980 she was doing a favor for. 98 00:07:24,220 --> 00:07:29,480 Santagati eventually gives Bennett all the funds from his book, TV appearances, 99 00:07:29,760 --> 00:07:32,340 and the sale of a home he built in Vermont. 100 00:07:33,560 --> 00:07:39,800 I didn't need much money to survive, so I would just take everything and give it 101 00:07:39,800 --> 00:07:40,800 to Don. 102 00:07:41,770 --> 00:07:46,430 I literally believe that putting my money with Don Bennett was as safe as 103 00:07:46,430 --> 00:07:49,750 putting it in the bank. And Don made you feel that way. 104 00:07:50,130 --> 00:07:55,850 He says he appreciates what he believes to be Bennett's conservative approach. 105 00:07:56,050 --> 00:08:01,890 As Bennett tells Barron's in 2009, I'm competitive, but I'm not going to chase 106 00:08:01,890 --> 00:08:02,890 greed. 107 00:08:03,350 --> 00:08:08,390 While Bennett says she won't chase greed, she doesn't shy from excess as 108 00:08:08,390 --> 00:08:10,530 evidenced by the spoils of her wealth. 109 00:08:11,040 --> 00:08:15,900 She had office space in Chevy Chase in an expensive retail location. 110 00:08:16,200 --> 00:08:21,740 She had two penthouse condos right down the road, also in Chevy Chase, that 111 00:08:21,740 --> 00:08:26,140 overlooked Washington, D .C. She had three different automobiles, expensive 112 00:08:26,140 --> 00:08:31,580 automobiles. She was very well put together, very well dressed. 113 00:08:32,440 --> 00:08:38,059 Perhaps most extravagantly, Bennett rents a luxury suite at the Dallas 114 00:08:38,059 --> 00:08:41,740 Stadium. for $500 ,000 a year. 115 00:08:42,580 --> 00:08:47,040 The length of the lease was 20 years, so ultimately that was a $10 million 116 00:08:47,040 --> 00:08:48,380 purchase that she made. 117 00:08:48,780 --> 00:08:53,600 For clients and listeners who tune into her weekly radio show called Financial 118 00:08:53,600 --> 00:08:58,320 Mythbusting, Bennett represents herself as a guru in her field. 119 00:08:58,960 --> 00:09:03,020 This is a time period to control your own financial destiny. 120 00:09:03,960 --> 00:09:06,220 But when American Greed returns... 121 00:09:06,780 --> 00:09:10,820 Some investors will discover perhaps the biggest financial myth that needs 122 00:09:10,820 --> 00:09:16,540 busting is that of Dawn Bennett herself, and some clients will pay the price. 123 00:09:16,960 --> 00:09:20,920 I worked with some of the biggest names in television, and now I'm living in a 124 00:09:20,920 --> 00:09:21,920 van? 125 00:09:32,520 --> 00:09:39,020 With a portfolio nearing a purported $2 billion in assets under management, Dawn 126 00:09:39,020 --> 00:09:43,520 Bennett is once again named to Barron's list of top financial advisors. 127 00:09:44,000 --> 00:09:49,720 In 2011, she's ranked number two in all of Washington, D .C. 128 00:09:50,180 --> 00:09:56,000 On her weekly radio show, she regularly touts her firm's accolades and 129 00:09:56,000 --> 00:09:57,000 successes. 130 00:09:57,440 --> 00:10:02,080 That's what we're practicing with the $1 .5 billion that we have right now with 131 00:10:02,080 --> 00:10:03,600 money under management and growing. 132 00:10:04,680 --> 00:10:08,540 Client Steve Santagati doesn't think he's taken any risks. 133 00:10:08,920 --> 00:10:13,840 With his entire life savings in the hands of a pro like Don Bennett, he says 134 00:10:13,840 --> 00:10:17,060 never thinks twice about the security of his nest egg. 135 00:10:17,820 --> 00:10:24,140 Santagati gives Bennett a total of $1 .1 million, and at first, she gets it up 136 00:10:24,140 --> 00:10:25,140 to $1 .5. 137 00:10:26,320 --> 00:10:29,340 But in 2011, things began to change. 138 00:10:30,160 --> 00:10:32,080 And I just started watching everything go down. 139 00:10:32,580 --> 00:10:36,380 First, it was dropping in like $10 ,000 or $20 ,000 increments. 140 00:10:36,660 --> 00:10:40,060 And I didn't really get too nervous about that. 141 00:10:40,860 --> 00:10:42,760 And then it started dropping hundreds of thousands. 142 00:10:42,980 --> 00:10:47,220 And I'm watching it go down, tune, tune, tune, tune. I'm like, oh, my God, I'm 143 00:10:47,220 --> 00:10:51,580 down to like $700 ,000. I'm down to $600 ,000. I'm down to $540 ,000. 144 00:10:52,360 --> 00:10:55,240 As his account dips below $200 ,000, 145 00:10:56,030 --> 00:11:01,910 an 85 % plummet, Santagati calls on a friend in finance to look at what's 146 00:11:01,910 --> 00:11:02,910 happened. 147 00:11:03,290 --> 00:11:08,290 And he looked at it, and he was like, oh, my God. 148 00:11:09,350 --> 00:11:14,170 According to Santagati, he will learn that Bennett concentrated him in 149 00:11:14,170 --> 00:11:19,050 investments without explaining the stakes, even though he insisted on being 150 00:11:19,050 --> 00:11:23,630 conservative and that she borrowed heavily on margin against his account. 151 00:11:23,930 --> 00:11:27,190 He says... to generate more commissions. 152 00:11:27,730 --> 00:11:32,630 And as Santagati is losing money, he believes Bennett is making it hand over 153 00:11:32,630 --> 00:11:38,250 fist, raking in $350 ,000 in fees on his account alone. 154 00:11:39,170 --> 00:11:43,630 Santagati eventually pulls his last bit of money from the firm. 155 00:11:44,310 --> 00:11:50,990 After 1 .5 at my highest, I ended up with $180 156 00:11:50,990 --> 00:11:52,010 ,000 left. 157 00:11:52,750 --> 00:11:53,750 That's it. 158 00:11:54,160 --> 00:11:58,780 My whole life's work, everything from paper route to the book, all that money, 159 00:11:58,900 --> 00:12:01,540 everything you've done for your entire life was gone. 160 00:12:02,480 --> 00:12:07,940 Don Bennett claims Santagati wanted a highly aggressive portfolio, which 161 00:12:07,940 --> 00:12:10,000 Santagati says simply isn't true. 162 00:12:10,420 --> 00:12:16,380 Without steady income from his career, Santagati sells everything he owns and 163 00:12:16,380 --> 00:12:22,580 uses what's left to buy a 300 -square -foot shack in Maine with no heat and an 164 00:12:22,580 --> 00:12:23,580 outdoor shower. 165 00:12:23,960 --> 00:12:28,500 He plans to live there in the summer. Then he converts a Ford transit van that 166 00:12:28,500 --> 00:12:30,060 he can live in the rest of the year. 167 00:12:30,800 --> 00:12:34,400 Santagati is dumbfounded at his reversal of fortune. 168 00:12:35,340 --> 00:12:39,480 I worked with some of the biggest names in television, and now I'm living in a 169 00:12:39,480 --> 00:12:40,480 van? 170 00:12:40,980 --> 00:12:43,500 It wasn't drugs. It wasn't alcohol. 171 00:12:43,860 --> 00:12:44,860 It wasn't gambling. 172 00:12:45,240 --> 00:12:47,240 It wasn't bad relationships. 173 00:12:47,860 --> 00:12:49,100 It was a crook. 174 00:12:49,500 --> 00:12:50,520 I was robbed. 175 00:12:52,000 --> 00:12:53,000 He's not alone. 176 00:12:53,800 --> 00:12:57,840 Other Bennett clients say they are suffering staggering losses as well. 177 00:12:58,780 --> 00:13:03,120 Several, including Santagati, filed complaints with the Financial Industry 178 00:13:03,120 --> 00:13:04,600 Regulatory Authority. 179 00:13:05,140 --> 00:13:10,680 As shown in this FINRA broker check report, Bennett fights the allegations. 180 00:13:11,980 --> 00:13:16,240 When the complaints from customers started to mount, they started to show 181 00:13:16,240 --> 00:13:17,920 really, really egregious stuff. 182 00:13:19,120 --> 00:13:24,010 Simultaneously, The Securities and Exchange Commission is examining claims 183 00:13:24,010 --> 00:13:28,410 Bennett has made about her assets under management and client performance. 184 00:13:28,890 --> 00:13:34,530 But by then, Bennett, a former competitive swimmer, is diving headfirst 185 00:13:34,530 --> 00:13:35,530 another pool. 186 00:13:36,010 --> 00:13:42,690 In 2010, Bennett launches a side business, an online luxury sports gear 187 00:13:42,690 --> 00:13:45,950 clothing retailer, DJBennett .com. 188 00:13:46,800 --> 00:13:51,660 She cast DJ Bennett as a company that would give Under Armour a run for its 189 00:13:51,660 --> 00:13:55,660 money. Think like Lululemon on steroids. 190 00:13:56,080 --> 00:14:02,880 We're talking ski pants that are hundreds of dollars and tennis shoes 191 00:14:02,880 --> 00:14:06,700 and boots that were in the thousands of dollars. So she was looking for a very 192 00:14:06,700 --> 00:14:08,120 upscale clientele. 193 00:14:08,320 --> 00:14:13,480 This video on the site's homepage sells customers on the DJ Bennett lifestyle. 194 00:14:16,380 --> 00:14:20,840 plainly lays out who she was looking for as her target clientele. It was people 195 00:14:20,840 --> 00:14:24,280 who had a lot of money and a lot of free time on their hands. 196 00:14:25,060 --> 00:14:31,080 To complement her online luxury retail business, she opens an appointment -only 197 00:14:31,080 --> 00:14:35,140 showroom adjacent to her investment firm in the Chevy Chase Pavilion. 198 00:14:35,700 --> 00:14:42,140 There, Bennett serves up champagne and craft beer while clients peruse the 199 00:14:42,140 --> 00:14:43,140 products. 200 00:14:43,690 --> 00:14:48,850 Bennett repeatedly says that her retail business will rival Under Armour, and 201 00:14:48,850 --> 00:14:53,650 soon she'll offer some of her brokerage clients an extraordinary opportunity to 202 00:14:53,650 --> 00:14:55,130 get in on the ground floor. 203 00:14:56,550 --> 00:15:00,110 When American Greed returns, suspicions of fraud. 204 00:15:00,690 --> 00:15:04,550 I said, Don, are you Madoffing me right now? 205 00:15:04,750 --> 00:15:06,190 I said, how is this legal? 206 00:15:06,550 --> 00:15:10,450 And later, just what is Bennett keeping in her freezers? 207 00:15:25,000 --> 00:15:29,480 Dawn Bennett is still running her financial advisory business and her 208 00:15:29,480 --> 00:15:30,480 radio program. 209 00:15:30,800 --> 00:15:32,400 But she wants more. 210 00:15:33,300 --> 00:15:38,560 She's also launched an upscale online retailer, DJBennett .com. 211 00:15:38,760 --> 00:15:44,140 The website's professional promotional video appears designed to attract a 212 00:15:44,140 --> 00:15:45,660 wealthy clientele. 213 00:15:46,100 --> 00:15:51,700 But by December 2014, Bennett learned she's under investigation by regulators. 214 00:15:52,510 --> 00:15:54,790 when she gives testimony to FINRA. 215 00:15:55,770 --> 00:16:01,370 She was already in getting into some deep water or some hot water with 216 00:16:01,370 --> 00:16:07,450 regulators. They were already looking into her claims of having more assets 217 00:16:07,450 --> 00:16:12,930 under management than she had, claims of having better investment performance 218 00:16:12,930 --> 00:16:13,930 than she had. 219 00:16:15,030 --> 00:16:19,570 Furthermore, clients at her advisory firm have begun to abandon her. 220 00:16:20,270 --> 00:16:26,590 According to the SEC, by 2015, Bennett herself is only earning around $100 ,000 221 00:16:26,590 --> 00:16:28,350 in annual commissions. 222 00:16:29,790 --> 00:16:35,690 Her financial advisory business was tanking. You know, the amount of money 223 00:16:35,690 --> 00:16:42,410 she was managing was evaporating very quickly, and she 224 00:16:42,410 --> 00:16:43,470 was losing money. 225 00:16:43,950 --> 00:16:48,150 She sunk a lot of money into her sporting goods business. 226 00:16:48,830 --> 00:16:53,170 And so she reached a point where, according to investigators, that she was 227 00:16:53,170 --> 00:16:57,610 dire financial straits, but still living a very posh lifestyle. 228 00:16:58,450 --> 00:17:05,190 A lifestyle that includes that personal $500 ,000 annual lease for a skybox at 229 00:17:05,190 --> 00:17:06,490 the Dallas Cowboys Stadium. 230 00:17:07,190 --> 00:17:09,450 Bennett falls behind on the rent. 231 00:17:09,869 --> 00:17:15,770 Making matters worse, Bennett's online high -end retail business is a flop. 232 00:17:17,069 --> 00:17:22,890 DJBennett .com was losing millions of dollars year after year. In 2012, the 233 00:17:22,890 --> 00:17:25,150 business lost over $1 .4 million. 234 00:17:25,450 --> 00:17:28,450 In 2013, it did even worse. 235 00:17:28,710 --> 00:17:34,690 And then by 2015, it was losing over $6 .5 million annually. 236 00:17:36,670 --> 00:17:41,730 Strapped for cash and under mounting pressure, Bennett begins actively luring 237 00:17:41,730 --> 00:17:45,450 investors in her DJBennett luxury sporting goods business. 238 00:17:46,410 --> 00:17:50,110 using a business plan that promises high profits. 239 00:17:50,450 --> 00:17:53,930 Many are clients who hired her as their financial advisor. 240 00:17:54,730 --> 00:17:59,630 I had no issues with Dawn, no reason to distrust her. I've been with her since 241 00:17:59,630 --> 00:18:00,630 1995. 242 00:18:01,750 --> 00:18:07,570 After a relationship of 20 years, Carl is intrigued when Bennett offers him an 243 00:18:07,570 --> 00:18:11,910 investment opportunity in her retail venture, DJBennett .com. 244 00:18:12,450 --> 00:18:17,240 According to the information she shows him, The company is thriving. 245 00:18:18,280 --> 00:18:24,540 She told me how she was doing more business in the DJBennett .com than she 246 00:18:24,540 --> 00:18:26,100 on the Bennett Group Financial Services. 247 00:18:27,060 --> 00:18:31,400 And the majority of the business was from China. 248 00:18:32,640 --> 00:18:36,400 It's the same pitch that she makes to her other investors. 249 00:18:36,960 --> 00:18:38,580 She tells them, listen. 250 00:18:39,150 --> 00:18:43,690 This is a great investment, just like I would invest your retirement funds or 251 00:18:43,690 --> 00:18:47,710 life savings into something else through the relationship that we already have. 252 00:18:47,890 --> 00:18:54,710 But instead of putting into outside stocks or some other investment, 253 00:18:55,010 --> 00:18:59,050 you can put it into my company, and I will guarantee you a return. 254 00:19:00,550 --> 00:19:04,990 Bennett asks investors to buy convertible and promissory notes. 255 00:19:05,560 --> 00:19:09,620 Loans for which he guarantees an unbelievable rate of interest. 256 00:19:10,640 --> 00:19:16,320 So Ms. Bennett would promise them 15 % annual returns and also the opportunity 257 00:19:16,320 --> 00:19:23,260 to either withdraw the money at any time or to convert the debt into equity 258 00:19:23,260 --> 00:19:27,280 and actual ownership in this company that Ms. Bennett claimed was exceeding 259 00:19:27,280 --> 00:19:33,260 expectations. For some, the offer at first sounds a bit too good to be true. 260 00:19:34,090 --> 00:19:38,990 There was one period of time where I specifically asked her, you know, Don, 261 00:19:38,990 --> 00:19:45,470 you Madoffing me right now? I said, how can you tell me that it's a 15 % return? 262 00:19:45,650 --> 00:19:46,910 I said, how is this legal? 263 00:19:48,510 --> 00:19:51,670 And she's told me that this is my money. This is the company's money. 264 00:19:52,070 --> 00:19:54,750 I can give you whatever return I want to on the money. 265 00:19:55,790 --> 00:20:00,430 Bennett supplies investors with financial statements that show a 266 00:20:00,430 --> 00:20:01,430 company. 267 00:20:01,830 --> 00:20:06,130 According to the financial statements that Dawn Bennett was providing to her 268 00:20:06,130 --> 00:20:12,250 investors, DJBennett .com was making money hand over fist, year after year. 269 00:20:12,250 --> 00:20:16,090 top of that, the projected revenues that were in these financial statements were 270 00:20:16,090 --> 00:20:17,230 just through the roof. 271 00:20:18,170 --> 00:20:23,650 Carl transfers everything he has with Bennett Group Financial Services and 272 00:20:23,650 --> 00:20:25,950 invests it all in DJ Bennett. 273 00:20:26,230 --> 00:20:27,770 I was the largest investor. 274 00:20:28,030 --> 00:20:31,050 I made five, six different investments. 275 00:20:31,800 --> 00:20:35,720 Many of her investors find Bennett incredibly convincing. 276 00:20:36,100 --> 00:20:41,340 In emails later used against Bennett in court, one client declines her offer 277 00:20:41,340 --> 00:20:44,900 because he needs the funds to care for his bedridden wife. 278 00:20:45,160 --> 00:20:50,320 But Bennett will not take no for an answer and eventually wears him down. 279 00:20:51,230 --> 00:20:56,070 He let her know about his wife's condition and about their financial 280 00:20:56,070 --> 00:21:01,110 circumstances and his wife's predicament and that he couldn't tolerate any risk. 281 00:21:01,330 --> 00:21:08,030 And even knowing that, Bennett still took the entirety of his life 282 00:21:08,030 --> 00:21:12,890 savings, I think almost $850 ,000 to invest in her failing business and 283 00:21:12,890 --> 00:21:15,690 DJBennett .com. There were examples of... 284 00:21:16,330 --> 00:21:22,550 Dawn Bennett being remarkably aggressive, especially when she was 285 00:21:22,550 --> 00:21:24,570 effort at less sophisticated investors. 286 00:21:25,210 --> 00:21:31,670 On one occasion, she physically drove the victim to the bank in order to 287 00:21:31,670 --> 00:21:33,810 have that victim wire out money. 288 00:21:35,070 --> 00:21:40,230 There's surveillance footage from the bank where Ms. Bennett is right there at 289 00:21:40,230 --> 00:21:42,430 the teller stand with the victim. 290 00:21:43,180 --> 00:21:48,200 As Bennett concentrates her efforts on her retail business, her advisory firm 291 00:21:48,200 --> 00:21:49,460 remains under scrutiny. 292 00:21:50,200 --> 00:21:52,140 In September 2015, 293 00:21:52,860 --> 00:21:59,640 the SEC announces charges that from at least 2009 to 2011, Bennett and Bennett 294 00:21:59,640 --> 00:22:03,180 Group Financial Services woefully misled the public. 295 00:22:03,740 --> 00:22:10,280 Bennett had claimed to have between $1 .1 and $2 billion under management at 296 00:22:10,280 --> 00:22:15,630 firm. But when investigators start to dig, they can't find she ever had more 297 00:22:15,630 --> 00:22:17,270 than $407 million. 298 00:22:17,970 --> 00:22:23,190 According to SEC filings, those fabrications were submitted to Barron's 299 00:22:23,190 --> 00:22:27,710 ultimately used to secure Bennett's high rankings on the publication's top 300 00:22:27,710 --> 00:22:29,250 financial advisors list. 301 00:22:30,590 --> 00:22:35,170 She inflated her assets to get on the list, and then once she was on the list, 302 00:22:35,310 --> 00:22:38,030 she would use that status. 303 00:22:38,910 --> 00:22:43,110 and her assets, her inflated assets, on her radio program and other marketing 304 00:22:43,110 --> 00:22:47,170 programs. So it was basically, she had her own little system there just feeding 305 00:22:47,170 --> 00:22:51,170 on itself, which was all really based on the initial lie. 306 00:22:52,210 --> 00:22:56,990 At the time, Barron's tells Investment News that they compare the numbers 307 00:22:56,990 --> 00:23:00,150 advisors submit against the SEC database. 308 00:23:01,550 --> 00:23:05,190 They were kind of stuck in the situation of using the assets under management 309 00:23:05,190 --> 00:23:07,810 that Don Bennett was reporting to regulators. 310 00:23:09,360 --> 00:23:14,540 The SEC also contends Bennett lied about clients' performance to bolster her 311 00:23:14,540 --> 00:23:15,540 stature. 312 00:23:16,140 --> 00:23:21,980 To clients and D .J. Bennett investors, Bennett rushes the charges off. 313 00:23:22,320 --> 00:23:27,180 She said the reason for it was that she was very outspoken about President 314 00:23:27,180 --> 00:23:31,620 Obama's way of looking at finance. She described it as a witch hunt. 315 00:23:32,860 --> 00:23:37,740 Next on American Greed, Bennett turns to an unlikely place to solve her 316 00:23:37,740 --> 00:23:38,740 problems. 317 00:23:38,800 --> 00:23:40,400 but they're only getting worse. 318 00:23:41,160 --> 00:23:46,960 Came back from lunch one day and had a voicemail from the FBI. We need to speak 319 00:23:46,960 --> 00:23:48,820 with you and know this is not a joke. 320 00:24:02,980 --> 00:24:08,860 In the serene San Juan Islands of Washington State, Ben Collins operates 321 00:24:08,860 --> 00:24:10,820 website puja .net. 322 00:24:11,560 --> 00:24:17,180 A spiritual man who discovered Hinduism in his youth, Collins founded the site 323 00:24:17,180 --> 00:24:23,160 to center on puja and yaga rituals, traditional ceremonies involving 324 00:24:23,160 --> 00:24:24,200 to deities. 325 00:24:26,260 --> 00:24:31,560 Generically speaking, the goal of any of these rituals is to remove obstacles to 326 00:24:31,560 --> 00:24:32,560 success in life. 327 00:24:33,740 --> 00:24:39,540 For a small fee, Collins arranges for these rituals to be done by priests at 328 00:24:39,540 --> 00:24:40,900 temples in India. 329 00:24:41,760 --> 00:24:48,400 In mid -2015, Collins notices his site has a new customer, financial advisor 330 00:24:48,400 --> 00:24:50,680 entrepreneur Don Bennett. 331 00:24:51,500 --> 00:24:56,420 Don found us on the Internet, although I don't know exactly how or why in the 332 00:24:56,420 --> 00:24:58,180 beginning, but she started participating. 333 00:24:58,820 --> 00:25:03,920 And after a few months... She was spending more money than most people do. 334 00:25:04,260 --> 00:25:10,380 So I gave her a call and said, you know, I'm Ben Collins. You know, how can I 335 00:25:10,380 --> 00:25:11,380 help you? 336 00:25:11,760 --> 00:25:17,920 Bennett tells Collins she's being investigated by the SEC, but she paints 337 00:25:17,920 --> 00:25:19,040 herself as the victim. 338 00:25:19,400 --> 00:25:26,160 She emails him, I am in a very tough fight going against my enemies, and I 339 00:25:26,160 --> 00:25:27,680 all the help I can get. 340 00:25:28,240 --> 00:25:32,500 She wants to see what she could do to increase her prosperity and solve these 341 00:25:32,500 --> 00:25:33,680 problems with the SEC. 342 00:25:34,420 --> 00:25:40,380 She never shares whether she identifies as Hindu. But soon, Bennett is spending 343 00:25:40,380 --> 00:25:45,780 $1 ,000 a day for 100 priests to pray on her behalf. 344 00:25:46,640 --> 00:25:50,380 I would say to her, Don, you know, you don't have to do this much. 345 00:25:50,640 --> 00:25:54,320 You know, why not dial it back a little, take a long -range view. 346 00:25:55,180 --> 00:25:59,440 And she said, no, Ben, the money is not the point. At my peak, I was making a 347 00:25:59,440 --> 00:26:00,440 million dollars a month. 348 00:26:00,940 --> 00:26:02,480 Don't worry about the money. 349 00:26:03,280 --> 00:26:09,520 Quite honestly, Don could be a bit of a bully. She could be extremely insistent 350 00:26:09,520 --> 00:26:11,900 on getting whatever it was she wanted. 351 00:26:12,980 --> 00:26:19,420 In only two years, Bennett pays Collins more than $800 ,000 for the rituals. 352 00:26:20,900 --> 00:26:24,300 We were supporting probably 200 priests. 353 00:26:24,910 --> 00:26:29,290 And their families, for two years we provided them with some very steady and 354 00:26:29,290 --> 00:26:30,290 reasonable income. 355 00:26:30,550 --> 00:26:33,110 So some good came out of it from our side. 356 00:26:34,410 --> 00:26:38,130 Despite the prayers, regulators don't back off. 357 00:26:38,530 --> 00:26:45,010 In late 2015, an employee at a bank in Maryland becomes suspicious when an 80 358 00:26:45,010 --> 00:26:50,750 -year -old customer comes in requesting a withdrawal to invest in Bennett's 359 00:26:50,750 --> 00:26:53,870 online startup, DJBennett .com. 360 00:26:54,510 --> 00:27:00,270 The elderly woman provided some financials that Don Bennett had given 361 00:27:00,270 --> 00:27:05,370 DJBennett .com, which caused the bank branch representative to do some quick 362 00:27:05,370 --> 00:27:11,530 research. And the bank branch representative found the 2015 SEC press 363 00:27:11,530 --> 00:27:15,430 into the investigation into Bennett Group Financial Services. 364 00:27:15,750 --> 00:27:19,950 And at that point, the bank branch representative actually called the SEC. 365 00:27:20,880 --> 00:27:27,760 The SEC then also begins to investigate DJBennett .com and ultimately calls 366 00:27:27,760 --> 00:27:28,760 in the FBI. 367 00:27:29,440 --> 00:27:33,100 Came back from lunch one day and had a voicemail. 368 00:27:33,460 --> 00:27:38,360 This is Agent Custer from the FBI. We need to speak with you and know this is 369 00:27:38,360 --> 00:27:39,360 not a joke. 370 00:27:40,280 --> 00:27:44,800 Until then, Ben Collins has no idea that the money Bennett paid him is coming 371 00:27:44,800 --> 00:27:49,040 from investors who believe they are funding Bennett's luxury retail sporting 372 00:27:49,040 --> 00:27:50,040 goods venture. 373 00:27:50,440 --> 00:27:51,440 D .J. Bennett. 374 00:27:51,760 --> 00:27:56,520 He immediately cuts off contact with her and cooperates with investigators. 375 00:27:59,140 --> 00:28:05,780 As the FBI discovers, India is not the only place investor funds are going. 376 00:28:06,920 --> 00:28:12,000 Bank records reveal that funds from investor deposits come in and go 377 00:28:12,000 --> 00:28:16,660 out to pay law firms representing Bennett, the mortgages on her 378 00:28:17,340 --> 00:28:19,840 and her personal credit cards. 379 00:28:20,500 --> 00:28:27,500 And there were hundreds of thousands of dollars spent on places and things such 380 00:28:27,500 --> 00:28:30,900 as cosmetic procedures, Neiman Marcus. 381 00:28:31,360 --> 00:28:38,000 Over $130 ,000 were spent on these gems that were supposed to have 382 00:28:38,000 --> 00:28:44,980 mystical or spiritual properties. One stone in particular was a 21 -carat 383 00:28:44,980 --> 00:28:49,610 sapphire. They cost over $80 ,000 of investor money. 384 00:28:50,810 --> 00:28:55,330 Investor funds also go directly to the Dallas Cowboys, to whom Bennett owes 385 00:28:55,330 --> 00:28:58,850 hundreds of thousands of dollars on her luxury suite lease. 386 00:28:59,930 --> 00:29:04,330 The timing of the money coming in and the money going out was almost 387 00:29:04,330 --> 00:29:05,330 instantaneous. 388 00:29:06,250 --> 00:29:11,870 Almost as if she was waiting for the money to come in and she knew exactly 389 00:29:11,870 --> 00:29:12,870 she had to do with it. 390 00:29:13,840 --> 00:29:16,620 Other funds go to pay earlier investors. 391 00:29:18,020 --> 00:29:23,720 One day I came into work and the FBI was in my office and they pulled out a 392 00:29:23,720 --> 00:29:26,160 binder and they said that Don Bennett is running a Ponzi scheme. 393 00:29:26,460 --> 00:29:27,840 I didn't believe them. 394 00:29:28,820 --> 00:29:33,260 Meanwhile, when investors and creditors try to reach Bennett to redeem their 395 00:29:33,260 --> 00:29:37,800 funds, she dodges them as an FBI wiretap reveals. 396 00:29:39,530 --> 00:29:41,290 Good morning, Bennett Group. How may I help you? 397 00:29:41,530 --> 00:29:44,810 I would like to speak with Dawn Bennett. I'm a client. 398 00:29:45,870 --> 00:29:49,850 She is out on travel at the moment. Can I take a message and relay it to her? 399 00:29:50,270 --> 00:29:52,110 Where is she traveling? Out of the country? 400 00:29:52,310 --> 00:29:54,450 She's out of the country at the moment. 401 00:29:54,930 --> 00:29:56,430 In Asia. 402 00:29:56,970 --> 00:29:57,849 I'm sorry. 403 00:29:57,850 --> 00:30:02,450 She was very sick last week and now all of a sudden she's out of the country? 404 00:30:04,090 --> 00:30:10,780 Yes. A fairly routine example was If an investor called and said, you know, I 405 00:30:10,780 --> 00:30:15,760 need my money back, that employee would tell the investor, well, Don Bennett's 406 00:30:15,760 --> 00:30:16,760 in China. 407 00:30:17,180 --> 00:30:23,240 But according to the FBI, during those time periods, Bennett never leaves the U 408 00:30:23,240 --> 00:30:24,240 .S. 409 00:30:24,460 --> 00:30:30,720 We found credit card expenditures at times where she represented, she was out 410 00:30:30,720 --> 00:30:34,300 the country, you know, at Starbucks down the street. 411 00:30:34,500 --> 00:30:35,680 There was one particular... 412 00:30:37,000 --> 00:30:41,700 time period where she told me she was one place and I talked to them. They 413 00:30:41,780 --> 00:30:42,780 no, she's not. 414 00:30:43,320 --> 00:30:47,140 Would it surprise you to know that she never went to China? 415 00:30:48,040 --> 00:30:50,700 And then I said, okay. 416 00:30:51,560 --> 00:30:54,000 That was where the lie was revealed. 417 00:30:54,760 --> 00:30:59,860 Next on American Greed, investigators execute a search warrant and the case 418 00:30:59,860 --> 00:31:02,360 takes a dark and surprising turn. 419 00:31:02,600 --> 00:31:08,400 It said something like, I cross and cover you. I command you not to speak. I 420 00:31:08,400 --> 00:31:09,740 command you to hold your tongue. 421 00:31:17,520 --> 00:31:22,220 Dawn Bennett was once a respected power player in the financial industry. 422 00:31:22,760 --> 00:31:24,680 But in July 2016, 423 00:31:25,420 --> 00:31:31,180 the SEC bars Bennett from the securities industry for inflating her assets under 424 00:31:31,180 --> 00:31:35,520 management. and client performance at her financial advisory firm. 425 00:31:35,840 --> 00:31:41,360 At the same time, the FBI is conducting a criminal investigation into a possible 426 00:31:41,360 --> 00:31:46,940 Ponzi scheme involving Bennett's retail sportswear business, DJ Bennett. 427 00:31:48,660 --> 00:31:55,100 On August 2, 2017, FBI agents raid Bennett's office and her two penthouse 428 00:31:55,100 --> 00:31:56,460 condos in Chevy Chase. 429 00:31:57,040 --> 00:32:00,380 Their findings include evidence of both excess... 430 00:32:00,960 --> 00:32:01,960 and guilt. 431 00:32:02,720 --> 00:32:08,580 In the office, they uncover what appears to be a list of excuses an employee was 432 00:32:08,580 --> 00:32:11,640 to provide to callers who were attempting to reach Bennett. 433 00:32:11,920 --> 00:32:16,060 One of the penthouses, Bennett's residence, is filled with valuable Asian 434 00:32:16,060 --> 00:32:17,920 -influenced furniture and art. 435 00:32:18,140 --> 00:32:19,160 And the other? 436 00:32:19,660 --> 00:32:24,480 The other one she used almost exclusively as a closet. 437 00:32:25,080 --> 00:32:29,000 And the closet had all sorts of designer items in it. 438 00:32:29,280 --> 00:32:34,700 There were over 700 pairs of these high -end shoes, some of which still had the 439 00:32:34,700 --> 00:32:39,800 $1 ,000 price tag still on them. At first glance, you could say, well, 440 00:32:39,800 --> 00:32:44,760 that was the inventory for her company. But as it turned out, all of those shoes 441 00:32:44,760 --> 00:32:46,820 were the same size, and they were her shoe size. 442 00:32:47,660 --> 00:32:52,840 But perhaps the strangest evidence comes from the kitchen and a back room. 443 00:32:53,300 --> 00:32:59,960 There, investigators find two freezers jammed with mason jars, the lids each 444 00:32:59,960 --> 00:33:02,340 labeled with mysterious letters. 445 00:33:02,880 --> 00:33:07,880 So when we opened the mason jars, there was this kind of sandy sludge, and it 446 00:33:07,880 --> 00:33:09,240 didn't smell very good. 447 00:33:10,160 --> 00:33:15,580 Nearby, they find biographical information on SEC attorneys 448 00:33:15,580 --> 00:33:16,580 Bennett's case. 449 00:33:17,180 --> 00:33:20,780 Attorneys whose initials match the letters on the mason jars. 450 00:33:21,700 --> 00:33:27,720 And they find instructions for a beef tongue shut up hoodoo spell. 451 00:33:28,640 --> 00:33:35,560 It was a printout from a website in which a person could cast a spell 452 00:33:35,560 --> 00:33:41,820 using certain ingredients, which included beef tongue, lemon juice, red 453 00:33:42,000 --> 00:33:45,100 say the magic words. 454 00:33:45,560 --> 00:33:50,020 I'm paraphrasing here, but it said something like, I cross and cover you. 455 00:33:50,720 --> 00:33:54,560 I command you not to speak. I command you to hold your tongue. 456 00:33:55,820 --> 00:34:02,020 We can only imagine that Ms. Bennett cast this spell dozens of times to 457 00:34:02,020 --> 00:34:08,400 thwart the government investigation against her and to get the SEC to hold 458 00:34:08,400 --> 00:34:11,080 tongue. Anyone who would be... 459 00:34:12,460 --> 00:34:17,139 Utilizing the beef tongue shut up spell would be someone who is in a very dire 460 00:34:17,139 --> 00:34:18,139 situation. 461 00:34:18,580 --> 00:34:24,179 Sarah Best is a hoodoo practitioner and owner of Conjured Cadea, which sells 462 00:34:24,179 --> 00:34:27,120 potions and objects used in the creation of spells. 463 00:34:27,760 --> 00:34:33,380 Best says hoodoo should not be confused with voodoo, which is an actual 464 00:34:33,380 --> 00:34:34,380 religion. 465 00:34:34,980 --> 00:34:38,100 Hoodoo is an earth magical practice. 466 00:34:38,889 --> 00:34:45,889 It's a folk magic tradition that utilizes natural objects, curios, 467 00:34:46,429 --> 00:34:49,570 herbs, to bring about a desired effect. 468 00:34:50,830 --> 00:34:55,630 She's not connected to Bennett's case, but knows the beef tongue shut up spell 469 00:34:55,630 --> 00:34:56,909 Bennett seemed to perform. 470 00:34:58,530 --> 00:35:02,290 Typically, it would be used to stop somebody from slandering you or 471 00:35:02,290 --> 00:35:03,109 about you. 472 00:35:03,110 --> 00:35:07,950 It could also be used to, we would use the term, shut someone up. 473 00:35:08,330 --> 00:35:12,190 or if maybe they were going to speak against you in a court case. 474 00:35:12,670 --> 00:35:18,190 According to Best, those performing the spell would first acquire a tongue from 475 00:35:18,190 --> 00:35:18,968 a butcher. 476 00:35:18,970 --> 00:35:25,370 You would cut a slit down the center of the beef tongue, and in the slit you 477 00:35:25,370 --> 00:35:31,250 would put a photo or a name paper, we would call it, of the person that you 478 00:35:31,250 --> 00:35:34,590 would want to stop from speaking against you. 479 00:35:34,810 --> 00:35:36,850 And then you would sew it up. 480 00:35:37,480 --> 00:35:41,880 Best says the spell is nothing to mess with. She's only done it once. 481 00:35:42,220 --> 00:35:46,700 And she says it's very unusual if Bennett did it multiple times. 482 00:35:47,540 --> 00:35:51,920 It's a very serious working and it's not something that's taken lightly. 483 00:35:52,180 --> 00:35:57,080 Usually situations aren't that dire. Usually people don't let them get that 484 00:35:57,800 --> 00:36:03,400 When the FBI's findings are later released, former Bennett clients are 485 00:36:04,220 --> 00:36:05,660 That was kind of... 486 00:36:05,950 --> 00:36:06,950 Way out there. 487 00:36:07,470 --> 00:36:10,170 That was in the wackadoodle range, to be honest. 488 00:36:10,530 --> 00:36:15,510 Up next on American Greed, Bennett may have tried to shut up investigators, but 489 00:36:15,510 --> 00:36:17,810 she can't seem to hold her own tongue. 490 00:36:18,450 --> 00:36:23,810 But I'm asking you as my friend to keep it committed until October 31st. Please. 491 00:36:24,310 --> 00:36:25,350 I can't do it. 492 00:36:26,130 --> 00:36:27,550 Oh, God, help me. 493 00:36:40,400 --> 00:36:45,240 The government has amassed a preponderance of evidence that Don 494 00:36:45,240 --> 00:36:46,240 running a fraud. 495 00:36:46,380 --> 00:36:49,900 But there's one more nail to be hammered into the coffin. 496 00:36:51,060 --> 00:36:56,620 Investor Carl agrees to record his conversations with Bennett for the FBI. 497 00:36:57,360 --> 00:37:00,460 Every conversation was, we're doing really well. 498 00:37:00,740 --> 00:37:06,580 But when Carl asks for some of his money back... There were times when Don 499 00:37:06,580 --> 00:37:09,420 Bennett was saying it was impossible because for... 500 00:37:09,760 --> 00:37:13,460 sort of obscure financial reasons. We won't be able to return the money to you 501 00:37:13,460 --> 00:37:14,238 right away. 502 00:37:14,240 --> 00:37:18,920 I'm asking you as my friend to keep it committed until October 31st, please. 503 00:37:19,380 --> 00:37:20,540 I can't do it. 504 00:37:21,280 --> 00:37:22,700 Oh, God, help me. 505 00:37:22,960 --> 00:37:24,600 Is there any way that you can? 506 00:37:24,820 --> 00:37:31,480 Anyway, I'm just begging you because I really do not have the time to sit there 507 00:37:31,480 --> 00:37:36,540 and, you know, reorganize a financial thing right now. I just don't. And for 508 00:37:36,540 --> 00:37:37,540 the right reasons. 509 00:37:37,850 --> 00:37:42,350 And then there were other times when Don Bennett was communicating to this 510 00:37:42,350 --> 00:37:46,130 investor that this is a terrible idea for you because we're making so much 511 00:37:46,130 --> 00:37:50,350 at this company that you don't want to withdraw your money. I'm only asking for 512 00:37:50,350 --> 00:37:51,350 my money. 513 00:37:51,430 --> 00:37:55,030 Oh, by the way, I know. But here's part two. 514 00:37:55,610 --> 00:38:00,890 I have made you, this company, still, because of your equity step -up, that $3 515 00:38:00,890 --> 00:38:02,310 million is worth over $6 million. 516 00:38:03,290 --> 00:38:05,090 You're crazy to fuck with it. 517 00:38:08,620 --> 00:38:15,600 On August 25th, 2017, investigators arrest Bennett at a rented vacation home 518 00:38:15,600 --> 00:38:16,700 Santa Fe, New Mexico. 519 00:38:18,260 --> 00:38:24,740 Bennett is charged with 17 counts, including wire fraud, bank fraud, and 520 00:38:24,740 --> 00:38:26,960 false statements on a loan application. 521 00:38:28,120 --> 00:38:32,820 According to the government, from December 2014 through April 2017, 522 00:38:33,620 --> 00:38:35,300 Bennett ran a Ponzi scheme. 523 00:38:36,000 --> 00:38:41,620 And investor funds meant as loans to her retail sportswear company were actually 524 00:38:41,620 --> 00:38:46,740 going to fund her lavish lifestyle, as well as pay back earlier investors. 525 00:38:47,760 --> 00:38:53,100 Prosecutors alleged that at least 46 people invested $20 million in the 526 00:38:53,300 --> 00:38:58,120 At her trial, the jury never hears about Bennett's alleged hoodoo practice. 527 00:38:58,620 --> 00:39:01,300 Instead, a parade of victims testify. 528 00:39:01,950 --> 00:39:06,570 that they trusted Bennett with their life savings and ended up losing it all. 529 00:39:07,290 --> 00:39:12,950 This was money that these folks had set aside for ailing family members, for 530 00:39:12,950 --> 00:39:18,370 their own long -term care, for their grandchildren's education, so that they 531 00:39:18,370 --> 00:39:21,470 could retire and so that they wouldn't have to return to the workplace. 532 00:39:21,870 --> 00:39:25,670 So the loss of these funds was just absolutely devastating. 533 00:39:26,730 --> 00:39:28,370 Bennett does not testify. 534 00:39:29,260 --> 00:39:35,300 But her attorneys argue that, like Amazon once was, DJBennett .com was a 535 00:39:35,300 --> 00:39:39,860 that someday would have been a huge success, and that she herself had sucked 536 00:39:39,860 --> 00:39:42,560 millions of her own dollars into the venture. 537 00:39:43,100 --> 00:39:46,720 Don Bennett's defense was that I wasn't lying. 538 00:39:47,520 --> 00:39:53,200 I told these investors that the company was successful, and I believe it was 539 00:39:53,200 --> 00:39:56,000 successful. I believe it was going to be successful. 540 00:39:56,440 --> 00:39:58,140 Sure, I wasn't making... 541 00:39:58,820 --> 00:40:03,500 massive profits, but I viewed my company as a startup, she would say. 542 00:40:03,980 --> 00:40:06,660 But the jury doesn't buy it. 543 00:40:06,920 --> 00:40:13,500 The evidence showed that while she was promising to use her investors' money 544 00:40:13,500 --> 00:40:19,720 solely to further the business interests of her investors and of DJBennett .com, 545 00:40:19,920 --> 00:40:24,480 that she was spending millions upon millions of dollars on expenses that 546 00:40:24,480 --> 00:40:26,200 exclusively benefited herself. 547 00:40:27,500 --> 00:40:32,600 In October 2018, Bennett is found guilty on all 17 counts. 548 00:40:32,940 --> 00:40:39,640 She's later sentenced to 20 years in prison and ordered to pay $14 .5 million 549 00:40:39,640 --> 00:40:40,860 in restitution. 550 00:40:41,620 --> 00:40:45,860 Dawn Bennett does not respond to American Greed's requests for an 551 00:40:46,240 --> 00:40:51,820 But at her sentencing, Bennett states, I am so profoundly humiliated that it 552 00:40:51,820 --> 00:40:53,740 will be difficult to ever shake off. 553 00:40:54,320 --> 00:40:55,840 She's appealing her case. 554 00:40:56,820 --> 00:40:59,840 Carl only gets back a quarter of what he invested. 555 00:41:00,460 --> 00:41:02,540 Made me feel like a fool, obviously. 556 00:41:03,500 --> 00:41:08,900 All my plans, everything that I had tried to accomplish, I had done. 557 00:41:09,480 --> 00:41:12,700 And then, okay, it's gone. I need to start over again. 558 00:41:14,220 --> 00:41:19,140 Former client Steve Santagotti never invests in Bennett's sporting goods 559 00:41:19,900 --> 00:41:22,580 But he still considers himself one of her victims. 560 00:41:24,010 --> 00:41:29,950 And in March 2017, prior to Bennett's arrest, a FINRA arbitration panel 561 00:41:30,470 --> 00:41:35,570 awarding Santagati $1 million to cover his losses and legal fees. 562 00:41:36,030 --> 00:41:38,730 The award is paid out by insurance. 563 00:41:41,310 --> 00:41:46,830 Now, in coastal Maine, Santagati lives a simple life in a small house he built 564 00:41:46,830 --> 00:41:47,589 by himself. 565 00:41:47,590 --> 00:41:52,930 But he'll never forget the toll that hiring Don Bennett took on him. 566 00:41:53,580 --> 00:41:57,180 I would love to see Dawn Bennett face to face again in jail. 567 00:41:57,380 --> 00:41:59,740 Not so I could go there and go, I told you so. 568 00:41:59,980 --> 00:42:00,980 Ha ha ha. 569 00:42:01,300 --> 00:42:02,920 Look at you, you scumbag. 570 00:42:03,460 --> 00:42:05,400 I want to look her in the eyes. 571 00:42:06,640 --> 00:42:10,040 A victim of her theft. 572 00:42:11,360 --> 00:42:13,360 And just be able to say, I know. 573 00:42:14,060 --> 00:42:15,640 We all know who you are now.