Knoxville, TN (WOKI) A Knoxville husband and wife have been arrested on charges of wire fraud, money laundering and tax offenses.
The United States Department of Justice said a federal grand jury returned a 14-count indictment last week on 53-year-old Kenneth Francis Lee and 54-year-old Susan Amie Lee, both of Knoxville.
The Lees are accused of concocting a scheme to defraud investors and obtain money by falsely claiming that Kenneth was in litigation to sell a company to a large U.S. based investment firm and that, in exchange for help with “legal fees” for the transaction, victims would receive a percentage of the sale.
According to the DOJ, the victims never saw any money as there was no settlement, and the Lees allegedly spent it on personal expenses, including funding Kenneth Lee’s gambling habit.
Additionally, the DOJ says Kenneth did not report any of his income to the IRS despite being required to do so.
Susan is alleged in the indictment to have helped in collecting the fraud proceeds into accounts in her name and spending those funds.
Kenneth was indicted on seven counts of wire fraud, one count of money laundering and three counts of tax offenses, and Susan was indicted on three counts of money laundering offenses. The DOJ said they appeared in court on Wednesday and entered not guilty pleas.
If convicted, the DOJ said Kenneth and Susan both face up to 20 years in prison.
Their trial is scheduled for October 22.
