News; Couple Charged In Rare Coin Investment Scam

Couple Charged In Rare Coin Investment Scam

Coins Reportedly Worth 10 Percent Of Sales Price

http://www.nbc6.net/news/3248678/detail.html

POSTED: 9:20 pm EDT April 28, 2004

MIAMI -- A couple who advertised in Christian magazines has been
charged with running a $5 million fraud by selling gold coins at two
to three times their actual value, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.

Customers claim the coins were actually worth as little as 10 percent
of the sales price.

The $5 million figure was tied to charges in a 38-count mail and wire
fraud and money laundering indictment, but Assistant U.S. Attorney
Richard Boscovich said in court that the coin scam pitched by a
self-proclaimed born-again Christian may have cost investors $10
million since 2000.

The Miami couple lived the lifestyle of millionaires as complaints
mounted against them in the operations of U.S. Coin Exchange Inc.,
Coin and Currency Clearing Corp. and Twenty-First Century Grading
Service Inc.

Bail was set at $1 million for Armand DeAngelis, who has a New Jersey
securities fraud conviction on his record, and $200,000 for his wife
Marcela Ospina Cardona.

U.S. Coin Exchange used a Christian fish symbol and Bible quotations
on its letterhead and promoted itself as the leading Christian gold
dealer, the indictment said. Ads appeared in Christian magazines such
as World, The American Prospect, Christianity Today, Pulpit Helps and
Christian Parenting Today.

All three companies were controlled by DeAngelis, even though the
grading company was represented as an independent coin assessor, the
indictment said. The clearinghouse and grading company shared the same
Miami address.

Steven Chaykin, attorney for DeAngelis, a New York native who is
charged in all 38 counts, said his client cooperated with
investigators, did not commit any crimes and is confident that he will
be cleared.

Sam Rabin, attorney for Ospina, said she was "wrongfully charged and
should not have been included in this indictment." The Colombian
citizen faces a conspiracy charge as president of the clearinghouse,
which delivered coins to the grading company.

A disgruntled customer filed a civil racketeering suit against
DeAngelis in 2000, claiming DeAngelis preyed on worries that the U.S.
monetary system could collapse on Y2K and offered a set of four coins
with a face value of $37.50 for $3,560, claiming they were rare.
Others claimed he targeted the elderly and IRA holders.

Another unhappy customer, Kenneth Viall of Hallstead, Pa., launched a
personal crusade, including a Web site, against DeAngelis after Viall
claimed he was ripped off on coin deals dating back to 1995.

DeAngelis "has done awful, awful things to people from all over the
country. He pretends to be born-again Christian. He sucks them into
these contracts," said Viall's attorney Gerald Houlihan. DeAngelis
sued Viall for nonpayment in 1999 in what Viall claims was an attempt
to intimidate him into silence.

Houlihan said he was contacted about DeAngelis by a man who lost
$360,000 but was too embarrassed to sue, a widow who spent her
$250,000 life savings from a life insurance policy on coins worth
$40,000 and an 82-year-old woman who lost close to $90,000.

Prosecutors have frozen all assets it knows of that are tied to
DeAngelis and plans to go after his heavily mortgaged home, which is
on the market for $3.5 million. The couple live there with their
3-year-old daughter. The family bought the house "right smack in the
middle of the conspiracy period," Boscovich said.

Golden Beach Mayor Michael Addicott, who has represented DeAngelis in
civil cases, appeared in court along with an accountant and others as
character references willing to put up bail money.

DeAngelis could face up to 20 years if convicted of the fraud and
money laundering charges. Ospina faces a possible five-year term.

DeAngelis also faces three to 10 years at sentencing May 10 in New
Brunswick, N.J., for failing to pay $550,000 on a $1.5 million
restitution order while on probation for 10 years for a state
securities fraud conviction, Boscovich said.

Coins Reportedly Worth 10 Percent Of Sales Price

jeez,doesn't this prosecutor ever watch shop at home?

phil

Darn, on first glance thought this had to do with the recent posts regarding
members of this group being subpoened and the outcome of their intrepid
cause...

p.

"Rusty Barton" wrote in message
...
Couple Charged In Rare Coin Investment Scam

Coins Reportedly Worth 10 Percent Of Sales Price

http://www.nbc6.net/news/3248678/detail.html

POSTED: 9:20 pm EDT April 28, 2004

MIAMI -- A couple who advertised in Christian magazines has been
charged with running a $5 million fraud by selling gold coins at two
to three times their actual value, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.

Customers claim the coins were actually worth as little as 10 percent
of the sales price.

The $5 million figure was tied to charges in a 38-count mail and wire
fraud and money laundering indictment, but Assistant U.S. Attorney
Richard Boscovich said in court that the coin scam pitched by a
self-proclaimed born-again Christian may have cost investors $10
million since 2000.

The Miami couple lived the lifestyle of millionaires as complaints
mounted against them in the operations of U.S. Coin Exchange Inc.,
Coin and Currency Clearing Corp. and Twenty-First Century Grading
Service Inc.

Bail was set at $1 million for Armand DeAngelis, who has a New Jersey
securities fraud conviction on his record, and $200,000 for his wife
Marcela Ospina Cardona.

U.S. Coin Exchange used a Christian fish symbol and Bible quotations
on its letterhead and promoted itself as the leading Christian gold
dealer, the indictment said. Ads appeared in Christian magazines such
as World, The American Prospect, Christianity Today, Pulpit Helps and
Christian Parenting Today.

All three companies were controlled by DeAngelis, even though the
grading company was represented as an independent coin assessor, the
indictment said. The clearinghouse and grading company shared the same
Miami address.

Steven Chaykin, attorney for DeAngelis, a New York native who is
charged in all 38 counts, said his client cooperated with
investigators, did not commit any crimes and is confident that he will
be cleared.

Sam Rabin, attorney for Ospina, said she was "wrongfully charged and
should not have been included in this indictment." The Colombian
citizen faces a conspiracy charge as president of the clearinghouse,
which delivered coins to the grading company.

A disgruntled customer filed a civil racketeering suit against
DeAngelis in 2000, claiming DeAngelis preyed on worries that the U.S.
monetary system could collapse on Y2K and offered a set of four coins
with a face value of $37.50 for $3,560, claiming they were rare.
Others claimed he targeted the elderly and IRA holders.

Another unhappy customer, Kenneth Viall of Hallstead, Pa., launched a
personal crusade, including a Web site, against DeAngelis after Viall
claimed he was ripped off on coin deals dating back to 1995.

DeAngelis "has done awful, awful things to people from all over the
country. He pretends to be born-again Christian. He sucks them into
these contracts," said Viall's attorney Gerald Houlihan. DeAngelis
sued Viall for nonpayment in 1999 in what Viall claims was an attempt
to intimidate him into silence.

Houlihan said he was contacted about DeAngelis by a man who lost
$360,000 but was too embarrassed to sue, a widow who spent her
$250,000 life savings from a life insurance policy on coins worth
$40,000 and an 82-year-old woman who lost close to $90,000.

Prosecutors have frozen all assets it knows of that are tied to
DeAngelis and plans to go after his heavily mortgaged home, which is
on the market for $3.5 million. The couple live there with their
3-year-old daughter. The family bought the house "right smack in the
middle of the conspiracy period," Boscovich said.

Golden Beach Mayor Michael Addicott, who has represented DeAngelis in
civil cases, appeared in court along with an accountant and others as
character references willing to put up bail money.

DeAngelis could face up to 20 years if convicted of the fraud and
money laundering charges. Ospina faces a possible five-year term.

DeAngelis also faces three to 10 years at sentencing May 10 in New
Brunswick, N.J., for failing to pay $550,000 on a $1.5 million
restitution order while on probation for 10 years for a state
securities fraud conviction, Boscovich said.

Rusty Barton wrote:
MIAMI -- A couple who advertised in Christian magazines has been
charged with running a $5 million fraud by selling gold coins at two
to three times their actual value, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.

Florida, huh. Go figure.

Customers claim the coins were actually worth as little as 10 percent
of the sales price.

I wonder who's holder the coins were in. Hmmm, what holder implies a
value of only 10% of the sales price? You don't think .... ? Nah....

--
Bob

The problem I have with this is that if ten percent return is not
acceptable, what percent is? Twenty? Thirty? It seems to me that the coin
market as a whole abounds with transactions that would not return any more
than that. We buy a lot of things for reasons other than percent return, do
we not? Try this: purchase a non-key-date coin at a show, put it in a new
holder, and offer it to ALL the other dealers at the show. Start at 50
percent of what you paid. How many takers out of, say, 100 dealers? Betcha
you'd be lucky to find ONE. How low can you go? Or, consider how many
coins are on display at a show, overgraded, and therefore worth maybe half
of the marked RETAIL price. Convert that to wholesale, and you're back down
to 10-20 percent. In my view, based on my experience, numismatics is FULL
of coins priced at "two to three times their actual value." If I buy coins
for pleasure and pleasure alone, it doesn't matter if I acquire one of
these. But if I'm in it for a return on investment, then it is incumbent on
ME to learn the actual value of things and play or pass according to my
level of knowledge.

Please do not interpret the above comments as complaint. In spite of this
reality, I have remained in the hobby for fifty years. I love numismatics.
But reality it is. To suggest that there is any "entitlement" to a certain
minimum percent of return on coins is to ignore that reality.


"Rusty Barton" wrote in message
...
Couple Charged In Rare Coin Investment Scam

Coins Reportedly Worth 10 Percent Of Sales Price

http://www.nbc6.net/news/3248678/detail.html

POSTED: 9:20 pm EDT April 28, 2004

MIAMI -- A couple who advertised in Christian magazines has been
charged with running a $5 million fraud by selling gold coins at two
to three times their actual value, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.

Customers claim the coins were actually worth as little as 10 percent
of the sales price.

The $5 million figure was tied to charges in a 38-count mail and wire
fraud and money laundering indictment, but Assistant U.S. Attorney
Richard Boscovich said in court that the coin scam pitched by a
self-proclaimed born-again Christian may have cost investors $10
million since 2000.

The Miami couple lived the lifestyle of millionaires as complaints
mounted against them in the operations of U.S. Coin Exchange Inc.,
Coin and Currency Clearing Corp. and Twenty-First Century Grading
Service Inc.

Bail was set at $1 million for Armand DeAngelis, who has a New Jersey
securities fraud conviction on his record, and $200,000 for his wife
Marcela Ospina Cardona.

U.S. Coin Exchange used a Christian fish symbol and Bible quotations
on its letterhead and promoted itself as the leading Christian gold
dealer, the indictment said. Ads appeared in Christian magazines such
as World, The American Prospect, Christianity Today, Pulpit Helps and
Christian Parenting Today.

All three companies were controlled by DeAngelis, even though the
grading company was represented as an independent coin assessor, the
indictment said. The clearinghouse and grading company shared the same
Miami address.

Steven Chaykin, attorney for DeAngelis, a New York native who is
charged in all 38 counts, said his client cooperated with
investigators, did not commit any crimes and is confident that he will
be cleared.

Sam Rabin, attorney for Ospina, said she was "wrongfully charged and
should not have been included in this indictment." The Colombian
citizen faces a conspiracy charge as president of the clearinghouse,
which delivered coins to the grading company.

A disgruntled customer filed a civil racketeering suit against
DeAngelis in 2000, claiming DeAngelis preyed on worries that the U.S.
monetary system could collapse on Y2K and offered a set of four coins
with a face value of $37.50 for $3,560, claiming they were rare.
Others claimed he targeted the elderly and IRA holders.

Another unhappy customer, Kenneth Viall of Hallstead, Pa., launched a
personal crusade, including a Web site, against DeAngelis after Viall
claimed he was ripped off on coin deals dating back to 1995.

DeAngelis "has done awful, awful things to people from all over the
country. He pretends to be born-again Christian. He sucks them into
these contracts," said Viall's attorney Gerald Houlihan. DeAngelis
sued Viall for nonpayment in 1999 in what Viall claims was an attempt
to intimidate him into silence.

Houlihan said he was contacted about DeAngelis by a man who lost
$360,000 but was too embarrassed to sue, a widow who spent her
$250,000 life savings from a life insurance policy on coins worth
$40,000 and an 82-year-old woman who lost close to $90,000.

Prosecutors have frozen all assets it knows of that are tied to
DeAngelis and plans to go after his heavily mortgaged home, which is
on the market for $3.5 million. The couple live there with their
3-year-old daughter. The family bought the house "right smack in the
middle of the conspiracy period," Boscovich said.

Golden Beach Mayor Michael Addicott, who has represented DeAngelis in
civil cases, appeared in court along with an accountant and others as
character references willing to put up bail money.

DeAngelis could face up to 20 years if convicted of the fraud and
money laundering charges. Ospina faces a possible five-year term.

DeAngelis also faces three to 10 years at sentencing May 10 in New
Brunswick, N.J., for failing to pay $550,000 on a $1.5 million
restitution order while on probation for 10 years for a state
securities fraud conviction, Boscovich said.

"James Higby" wrote:
The problem I have with this is that if ten percent return is not
acceptable, what percent is? Twenty? Thirty? It seems to me that the
coin
market as a whole abounds with transactions that would not return any more
than that. We buy a lot of things for reasons other than percent return,
do
we not? Try this: purchase a non-key-date coin at a show, put it in a
new
holder, and offer it to ALL the other dealers at the show. Start at 50
percent of what you paid. How many takers out of, say, 100 dealers?
Betcha
you'd be lucky to find ONE. How low can you go? Or, consider how many
coins are on display at a show, overgraded, and therefore worth maybe half
of the marked RETAIL price. Convert that to wholesale, and you're back
down
to 10-20 percent. In my view, based on my experience, numismatics is FULL
of coins priced at "two to three times their actual value." If I buy
coins
for pleasure and pleasure alone, it doesn't matter if I acquire one of
these. But if I'm in it for a return on investment, then it is incumbent
on
ME to learn the actual value of things and play or pass according to my
level of knowledge.

Please do not interpret the above comments as complaint. In spite of this
reality, I have remained in the hobby for fifty years. I love
numismatics.
But reality it is. To suggest that there is any "entitlement" to a
certain
minimum percent of return on coins is to ignore that reality.

The term "return" usually implies return ON investment (i.e., profit). In
this case the complainants presumably sold their coins for 10% of what they
paid (return OF investment). That's awful, even in the coin market, if it
happened regularly. It becomes criminal when there's intent to defraud; the
proof of such fraud likely lies in the representations made to the buyers
(e.g., grade, risk of loss, etc.).

--Chris

"James Higby" heezerbumfrool[at]hotmail[dot]com wrote:
The problem I have with this is that if ten percent return is not
acceptable, what percent is? Twenty? Thirty?
In spite of this
reality, I have remained in the hobby for fifty years. I love numismatics.
But reality it is. To suggest that there is any "entitlement" to a certain
minimum percent of return on coins is to ignore that reality.

Thanks for the splash of reason. Who said that coins -- or any
collectibles -- were investments? From Max Mehl forward, the hobby
has honored those who ballyhoo and tout.

The article said that one man was sold coins iwth a "face value" of
37.50 for $3750 as investments. A $20, a $10, a $5 and a $2.50 in
gold, i.e, a double eagle on down.

I wonder who they are going to get to set the "fair market value"
price of the coins?

Prosecutors and defense attorneys both overstate their cases for the
press.

Michael

"Chris S" wrote:
The term "return" usually implies return ON investment (i.e., profit). In
this case the complainants presumably sold their coins for 10% of what they
paid (return OF investment). That's awful, even in the coin market ...

In the rare coin market, 10% ON investment is rare. Dealers do
better, of course, because we accept the price sheets that let them
set buy and sell, even as we bargain back and forth. For the average
collector, the only way to make a modest 7% on your coin investment is
to buy the most popular coins in the highest grades and hold them for
seven to ten years. Investing in keys, such as the 1909-S VDB and
1916-D and so on is one recommended strategy. If you follow the big
coins in the big auctions, tracing their pedigrees, you will see that
usually they were bad investments.

Michael

"Michael E. Marotta" wrote in message
om...

In the rare coin market, 10% ON investment is rare. Dealers do
better, of course, because we accept the price sheets that let them
set buy and sell, even as we bargain back and forth. For the average
collector, the only way to make a modest 7% on your coin investment is
to buy the most popular coins in the highest grades and hold them for
seven to ten years. Investing in keys, such as the 1909-S VDB and
1916-D and so on is one recommended strategy. If you follow the big
coins in the big auctions, tracing their pedigrees, you will see that
usually they were bad investments.

Michael

With rare exceptions of course. The keys (I mean the *real* keys) in the Australian
market have appreciated extraordinarily in the past decade(s). Returns of auctions
last year were spectacular.
The 1930 penny, the Holey Dollar, the 1923 ha'penny, you _couldn't_ have lost on
those in the past lttle while. The bubble just has to burst soon, though. Our little
market surely can't sustain such high prices for slugs of round copper.

....and don't get me started on the older banknotes.

--
Jeff R.

"James Higby" heezerbumfrool[at]hotmail[dot]com wrote in message

.. But if I'm in it for a return on investment, then it
is incumbent on ME to learn the actual value of things and play or
pass according to my level of knowledge.


This is the crux of the whole matter, right here. People should not (and
should not be encouraged to) buy coins as an investment. Period. Not only
is a person not assured of the value of what they buy but they also are
taking a risk that, even if they got a fair deal, there is no stability to
that value. Not even face value. Millions of non-US coins are not even
worth face due to devaluation or demonetizatiion. Everyone needs to realize
that there are only two reasons to acquire coins - - to use in commerce
(including coin dealing) and to collect as a hobby. IMO, if a person who is
not a coin dealer looks at a coin and sees $$$$$ he is seriously deluded.


--
©¿©¬
~
Ed Hendricks
ANA# R178621
"Life is a coin. You can spend it any way you wish, but you can
only spend it once!"