Warrant Issued in Investment Scheme
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Contra Costa County authorities allege an 84-year-old man concocted a scheme that cost St. Mary’s College a $112-million pledge and bilked millions from individuals.
John Banker faces eight counts of grand theft. Authorities issued an arrest warrant for him Wednesday, but believe he fled to Mexico in September.
Prosecutors said the scam began in 1997. That’s when Banker and Conrad Colbrandt, who since has been cleared of criminal wrongdoing, persuaded more than 100 people to invest about $8 million to buy land that would be leased to PepsiCo, authorities said. PepsiCo has said its name was used fraudulently.
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