FBI Says Clearwater Man Used Investors' Funds To Drink, Gamble

CLEARWATER, FL — A Clearwater man who was living the high life with money stolen from investors in his fictional company will spend the next 46 months in federal prison.

U.S. District Judge Mary S. Scriven sentenced Richard Eugene Buffington, 49, to nearly two years in prison after the FBI said he stole $1.2 million from victims who invested in his fake company, Green Street Equities.

Buffington pleaded guilty to wire fraud on April 30. His sentenced was handed down Sept. 26.

The court also ordered Buffington to forfeit more than $1.2 million from the proceeds of his criminal activities and pay more than $1.2 million in restitution to the victims of his fraud scheme.

But it could be a long time before the victims see any restitution funds. When he was arrested on Aug. 30, 2018, Buffington was broke.

According to court documents, from at least January 2013 through Aug. 29, 2018, Buffington defrauded 28 investors from Florida and other states out of more than $1.2 million by selling unregistered, non-exempt securities in the form of preferred shares. He told victims that he needed funding for his company, Green Street Equities (“GSE”).

Buffington, GSE’s listed chairman and president, pitched GSE as a company focused on investing in “green companies” (environmentally friendly projects). With the help of a legitimate-looking professional website and private placement referendum, Buffington told investors that GSE would go public soon after the investors’ stock purchases and trade at $19 per share. GSE would then use the investors' money to acquire ownership interests in various companies in the “green energy” sector.

Buffington appeared credible because, prior to 2013, he successfully raised funds for a company called Liberator Medical that had gone public and investors had profited, said the FBI. One investor gave Buffington $99,500 for GSE between 2013 and 2016.

Instead of investing the funds intended for GSE, the FBI said Buffington used the money he raised, including $3,000 wired to him by an undercover agent, for drinking, drugs and gambling.

The FBI said he led a lavish lifestyle with the money from investors. He rented a pricey waterfront home on Boca Ciega Bay and spent more than $15,000 drinking and gambling at Derby Lane and the Hard Rock Casino.

The FBI and the Florida Office of Financial Regulation began investigating Buffington after victims came forward to complain that they never saw a return on their investments, and they could no longer reach Buffington by phone or email.

When he was arrested last year, Buffington listed his address as a homeless shelter. Because he was deemed indigent, he was assigned a public defender.

His bad habits continued while awaiting sentencing, however. On Aug. 12, Clearwater Police arrested Buffington and charged him with possession of cocaine.