Former Cypress Lake basketball coach arrested for fraud
FORT MYERS, Fla. - A joint investigation led to the arrest of a former basketball coach at Cypress Lake High School, accused of scamming friends and fellow employees out of approximately $200,000.
51-year-old Robert Schnepp convinced friends, teachers and fellow coaches that he was an investment adviser and could help them make money.
The investigation by the Lee County Sheriff's Office Economic Crimes Unit, the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the State of Indiana Securities Division of the Prosecution Assistance Unit.
During a three year period, Schnepp solicited money for the scam, even sending out bogus quarterly statements to his victims that indicated that their investments were doing well.
The scheme began to fall apart when some of Schnepp's victims ask to cash in some of their returns and the checks he issued bounced.
The investigation showed that Schnepp operated a Ponzi scheme from 2008 to 2011, using money solicited from the victims pay previous investors and to pay for personal expenses.
Schnepp faces nearly three dozen felony charges and was arrested Thursday in Hudson, Florida.
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