LEXINGTON, N.C. – People are questioning how a North Carolina man operated a $600 million Ponzi scheme that attracted 1 million investors, even though regulators had received dozens of complaints about the company.
Authorities say Paul Burks is the mastermind of one of the biggest investment scams in U.S. history.
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His online company ZeekRewards was based in Lexington, N.C.
The Securities and Exchange Commission closed ZeekRewards in August. Burks has agreed to pay a $4 million penalty.
Investigators say he siphoned millions for his personal use, but he hasn’t been charged.
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Burks says he never told anyone to invest more money than they could afford.
Investors say they were duped.
They also didn’t know regulators had received nearly a dozen complaints about ZeekRewards but failed to take action for months.
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