CHICAGO — A California man who claimed to be an investment advisor has been sentenced to two and a half years in federal prison for swindling a Glenview resident out of $2 million.
Raymond Echavez Villamor, 62, of Newport Beach, fraudulently solicited and obtained the investment from a person residing in Glenview over the course of six months in 2023, according to federal authorities.
Villamor pleaded guilty in 2025 to a federal wire fraud charge. On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Andrea R. Wood sentenced him to 30 months in federal prison and ordered him to pay full restitution to his victim. The sentenced was announced in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
Federal authorities said Villamor made false representations about the purported investment and falsely promised that the victim would receive all of the money back, plus a substantial return.
Instead, Villamor used the money on personal expenses, including the purchase of vintage automobiles, according to the announcement. He also raised funds from other investors and used some of the money from the Glenview victim to repay those investors in classic Ponzi-scheme conduct.
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