Man guilty of securities fraud sentenced to prison, ordered to repay $23.5 million
A former Clark County man who stole more than $26 million through mining and real estate investment scams was sentenced Tuesday to more than six years in federal prison and ordered to pay his victims $23.5 million in restitution.
Alberto DoCouto, 68, created a number of false business fronts from 2001 through 2007, then "told investors that he and his companies were engaged in exploring and developing a series of lucrative mining claims in Peru, Guyana, California and Nevada," according to a statement from U.S. Attorney Daniel Bogden.
The stocks he sold were worthless because the mining projects never existed, according to the statement.
DoCouto reportedly purchased a 6,000-square-foot home in Henderson's affluent Lake Las Vegas and several luxury automobiles, according to Bogden. All of those assets were seized by the government.
The man reportedly told investors in North America and the Middle East he needed their money to fund a water delivery system for an Arizona real estate project.
That development, like the mines, was a product of his imagination. According to Bogden, DoCouto used the ill-gotten gains from the real estate scam to pay his mortgage, make "lavish" home improvements and pay for a riding stable.
U.S. District Judge James Mahan accepted DoCouto's guilty plea to securities fraud in June and sentenced him Tuesday.
Bogden said the judge found the defendant was "delusional and not generally remorseful."
Contact Doug McMurdo at dmcmurdo@review
journal.com or 702-224-5512.
