Former Mineola Resident Gets 5 Years Probation For Securities Fraud Scheme Targeting Haitians: State AG

NEW YORK — A Florida resident was sentenced to five years’ probation and banned from the securities industry for five years Thursday after prosecutors said he stole over $600,000 in a securities fraud scheme that targeted Haitian communities in New York, Florida and Georgia.

Former Mineola resident Marc Henry Menard pleaded guilty in Nassau County Supreme Court back in April on charges of second-degree grand larceny, first-degree scheme to defraud and securities fraud, Attorney General Letitia James’ office said Thursday.

According to James’ office, those charges stemmed from a scheme wherein Menard collected hundreds of thousands of dollars from 11 people, claiming he was a “highly successful trader and could generate returns of up to 20 percent per month.”

“Instead, Menard transferred investors’ money into his own personal trading account, where he sustained staggering losses from high-risk trading,” James’ office said. “Menard also used his investors’ money to pay his personal expenses, make expensive purchases on travel and luxury goods, including from Gucci and Louis Vuitton, and repay prior investors.”

According to prosecutors, an investigation into Menard showed that he ran the scheme from July 2020 to June 2023, soliciting Haitians in Nassau, Suffolk, Rockland and Queens counties, as well as Florida and Georgia, to invest in his company, Marcotech, LLC.

“He promised investors monthly returns of between 12 and 20 percent and promised higher percentages if they recruited additional individuals to invest,” James’ office said. “In order to solicit investments, Menard told investors that he was an experienced and highly successful trader of stocks and cryptocurrencies.”

Prosecutors said Menard would deposit a portion of these investments into his personal trading accounts and engage in “risky trading options” including day trading and options trading. Between July of 2021 and October of 2022, Menard lost over $670,000 on these trades, prosecutors said.

“Menard also used hundreds of thousands of dollars from investors to repay prior investors, and for personal expenditures,” James’ office said. “Menard spent over $100,000 on trips to Turkey, Puerto Rico, and Disney World, a 2021 Mercedes Benz and a 2022 BMW, and purchases at luxury retailers such as Louis Vuitton and Gucci.”

According to the prosecution, Menard showed investors fake ATM receipts and a fake trading screen to keep up the ruse. The ATM receipt showed an account balance of over $8 million while the trading screen showed a value of over $1 million in the account, prosecutors said.

In reality, Menard’s trading account never had more than $240,000 in it during that time, while the bank account never had more than $301,000.

“Marc Henry Menard lied to hard-working New Yorkers and stole hundreds of thousands of dollars to treat himself to lavish trips and luxury purchases,” said Attorney General James. “Thank you to my partners in law enforcement for helping to end this fraud and bring Menard to justice. I encourage all New Yorkers to take caution when making investments and report any suspicious offers to my office.”

In addition to the probation and ban from the trades, James’ office said Menard had judgments entered against him to give back the $385,271 that he owes to investors.