Federal court: Man charged for defrauding Adams County investors files plea agreement

(Harrisburg) — A man who police say netted roughly $350,000 during an investment scheme in Adams County entered a plea agreement in federal court Friday, according to online court documents.

Jorge Salazar, 54, of Georgia, would plead guilty to wire fraud, money laundering and aggravated identity theft if Judge Sylvia Rambo accepts the agreement, according to the plea filed with federal court in Harrisburg. Several related charges filed against him would be dropped.

Salazar allegedly defrauded 19 people, at least 10 of whom were in Adams County, starting in 2012, according to the federal indictment and a news release issued by the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania in December.

Posing as a licensed attorney and investor, Salazar allegedly told investors they would receive a guaranteed yield of three times their original investment to him, court documents state. Salazar, however, allegedly did not invest the funds and instead used them for personal gain.

Agents from the FBI and the IRS’s criminal investigation division arrested Salazar in Kentucky in November, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

If the judge accepts Salazar’s plea, Salazar could face a maximum sentence of 42 years in prison and $1 million in fines, among other penalties, according to the plea agreement.

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This article comes to us through a partnership between the Evening Sun and WITF.