Brian Mitchell from Ann Arbor, Michigan, was recently sentenced after pleading guilty to running a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme that scammed more than 120 people and organizations, including a local church.
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According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan, Mitchell, 44, began the scheme in 2020, using two fraudulent investment companies — “Young Pros Investment Group” and “My Nest Egg” — as cover. According to court documents, he scammed at least 128 individuals and organizations, causing losses of more than $2.7 million.
This wasn’t the first time Mitchell found himself on the wrong side of the law. In 2021, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) ordered him to stop soliciting investment services, making trades, and taking investments after it discovered violations he committed between 2018 and 2019. Mitchell agreed to the settlement but never actually stopped.
Mitchell didn’t work alone. Witness testimony identified another man, Kevin Mack Jr., who allegedly pointed potential investors toward Mitchell as an expert despite knowing of Mitchell’s past. Neither Mitchell nor Mack was registered as a broker, broker-dealer, investment agent, or investment adviser, and the investments they advertised were not registered either. Because neither man was listed as associated with the funds they promoted, they evaded detection and accountability from the CFTC — allowing them to commingle company and investor funds while circumventing safeguards designed to protect investors.
The scheme worked for years because investors received fabricated documents making their accounts look healthier than they actually were. When Mitchell suffered significant trading losses, he told investors the CFTC had seized assets he called “backup money,” using that as an excuse for why their funds were no longer protected under the guarantees he had initially promised. As he ran out of money, Mitchell took on new clients and used their investments to pay off earlier investors, continuing the scheme. When that money ran out too, he targeted a local church to cover his tracks.
Mitchell admitted promising the unnamed Ann Arbor church a 72% annual return on its $150,000 investment, assuring the congregation it would earn almost $4.8 million over five years.
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The scam wasn’t uncovered until an FBI investigation in 2025. Mitchell pleaded guilty to wire fraud in June. He was sentenced Oct. 7 to 33 months in federal prison, restitution of more than $2.7 million to his victims, and two years of supervised release following his prison term.
“This defendant caused regular folks to lose millions of dollars,” said U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon, Jr. “That was not enough for him, so he targeted a church to cover his scheme. He is shameless.”
Following the case, Financial Advisor magazine cautioned investors to be wary of extraordinary returns advertised as dependable income, or promises that investment principal can’t be lost. It also reminded investors to verify a professional’s history rather than rely on claims of expertise, promises of lucrative returns, or an existing personal relationship.
Similarly, Investor.gov urges faith-based institutions to know exactly what they’re being sold before investing and to get any offer in writing. It notes that legitimate investment professionals won’t rush a decision, warning: “Don’t fall for investments promising spectacular profits or ‘guaranteed’ returns. … Promises of quick and high investment returns, without risk, are classic warning signs of fraud.”
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