Actor Zachary Horwitz sentenced to 20 years for $980 million Ponzi scheme

Actor Zachary Horwitz was sentenced to a maximum of 20-years by a federal judge. Photo / Getty Images

An aspiring actor from Los Angeles has been sentenced to 20 years prison for running a massive Ponzi scheme that prosecutors said raised at least $980 million (US$650m) from more than 200 investors in sham film licensing deals.

Zachary J Horwitz – who goes by the stage name Zach Avery – was arrested last April in LA and charged with wire fraud.

According to a report by the Los Angeles Times, the 35-year-old fabricated emails from HBO and Netflix executives about non-existent film distribution agreements, in an attempt to stave off demands for payment from investors.

Horwitz allegedly sent investors bottles of Johnnie Walker Blue Label Scotch, along with his film distribution company, 1inMM Capital LLC's 2015 annual report that highlighted a "library" of 52 films it was supposedly distributing in Africa, Australia, New Zealand and South America.

He also falsely told investors that he had "strategic partnerships" with HBO, Netflix and other platforms to license the foreign distribution rights, with investors promised returns as high as 40 per cent within a year.

FBI agent John Verrastro said that in reality, Horwitz had no licensing deals and diverted much of the money for personal benefit – including the 2018 purchase of a six-bedroom home with a pool, wine cellar and gym and the assistance of a "celebrity interior designer".

A complaint from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission stated neither Horwitz or his company had ever done business with either of the streaming platforms.

"We allege that Horwitz promised extremely high returns and made them seem plausible by invoking the names of two well-known entertainment companies and fabricating documents," Director of the SEC's Los Angeles Regional Office, Michele Wein Layne said in a statement last April.

"We obtained an asset freeze on an emergency basis to secure for the benefit of investors what remains of the money raised by Horwitz."

Since December 2019, Horwitz's company defaulted on more than 160 payments due to his investors, according to the FBI.

Investigators have ordered him to pay back more than US$230.3m. He pleaded guilty in October to one count of securities fraud after his April arrest, and was today sentenced to a maximum of two decades in federal prison.

"Defendant Zachary Horwitz portrayed himself as a Hollywood success story," the US Attorney's Office for the Central District of California said.

"He branded himself as an industry player who, through his company … leveraged his relationships with online streaming platforms like HBO and Netflix to sell them foreign film distribution rights as a steady premium.

"But, as his victims came to learn, [Horwitz] was not a successful businessman or Hollywood insider. He just played one in real life."