CLEVELAND — A man from Las Vegas has been given a five-year prison sentence “after admitting to orchestrating a Ponzi scheme that defrauded business investors out of over $8.5 million,” according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio.

In addition to the prison sentence, Matthew J. Turnipseede, 51, has also been ordered to pay more than $4.7 million restitution.

“According to the indictment, from March 2015 to May 2021, Turnipseede induced approximately 72 individuals in Ohio and elsewhere to invest over $8.5 million in his betting companies, Edgewize and Moneyline Analytics,” the release reads. “He promised that their funds would be used to make sophisticated sports wagers which used an algorithm that generated double-digit returns. Turnipseede also told investors that he would not take compensation for placing wagers, but instead would retain a percentage of winning profits.”

However, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the companies never made the profits, and he used the money “to maintain the businesses, seek additional sources of funds, and pay off earlier investors.”

They said he also admitted to using some money for personal expenses.

The release continues, noting that Turnipseede would send email updates to the investors, telling them the companies were successful, alongside “falsified financial statements.”

“When a victim wanted to withdraw some, or all, of their funds, Turnipseede would use money invested by other victims to cover the withdrawal request,” the release reads. “The scheme collapsed in May 2021 when Turnipseede declared bankruptcy, still owing his investors over $4.7 million in principal alone.”

In November last year, he pleaded guilty to four counts of wire fraud.