A former New York broker who was convicted of conspiracy to commit mail fraud in a Ponzi scheme that spanned 10 years and defrauded hundreds of investors out of more than $115 million has been sentenced to more than 20 years in prison, according to a news release from the Department of Justice.
Christopher A. Parris, 42, formerly of Rochester, N.Y., and currently of Lawrenceville, Ga., also had pleaded guilty to wire fraud involving the fraudulent sale of purported N95 masks during the pandemic. He was sentenced Tuesday to 244 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Frank P. Geraci Jr.
According to a court document, between January 2011 and June 2018, Parris conspired with co-defendant Perry Santillo, 41, of Rochester, N.Y., and other co-conspirators to obtain money through a Ponzi scheme. The two men formed a business known as Lucian Development in Rochester, which raised millions of dollars from investors in that city and across the U.S.
The court said the men solicited investments for City Capital Corporation, a business operated by Atlanta resident Ephren Taylor that purported to help small business and issues promissory notes. It also sold machines with casino-type games on them, according to the court.
In July 2007, Taylor told Parris and Santillo that their investors’…
