A Summerfield man has been sentenced to more than 19 years in prison for his role in a Ponzi scheme and tax fraud, according to an announcement from United States Attorney Clifton T. Barrett of the Middle District of North Carolina.
William Lamar Rhew, III, age 39, received a sentence of 235 months’ imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release. The sentence was handed down by Judge Thomas D. Schroeder in the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina.
Court records show that between November 2017 and December 2023, Rhew defrauded at least 117 investors out of at least $24 million. He solicited investments through his company Chadley Capital, LLC, claiming the business would purchase accounts receivable at a discount and sell them for profit while providing high returns. Rhew promoted increasing deal flow and strong underwriting standards, claiming $300 million in transactions in 2023 and consistent annual returns above 20%. These claims were found to be false. Instead of investing as promised, Rhew used investor funds for personal expenses including buying a boat, beach house, luxury cars, making credit card payments, and paying other investors as part of the Ponzi scheme.
For tax years 2018 through 2022, Rhew failed to report nearly $9 million in income to the IRS and evaded over $3 million in taxes. He maintained a shell business funded partly by Chadley Capital victim funds to support his lifestyle and misrepresented payments into this entity as business expenses while not reporting related income. He also reported personal spending from Chadley Capital as business expenses and did not file individual tax returns for several years.
“This defendant devastated the personal finances of individual victims and defrauded the public at large by failing to file and pay taxes to the IRS,” said United States Attorney Barrett. “We will prosecute such schemes to the full extent of the law. We appreciate the robust investigation conducted by our law enforcement partners in this matter.”
Special Agent in Charge Donald “Trey” Eakins from IRS Criminal Investigation stated: “The defendant victimized his investors and defrauded American taxpayers by concealing his income from the IRS and evading his tax liability. IRS-CI’s collaborative investigative efforts alongside our law enforcement partners led to justice for the victims in this case.”
James C. Barnacle Jr., FBI Charlotte Special Agent in Charge added: “The time Rhew will spend behind bars will never make up for the millions of dollars he stole from more than a hundred people. He promised to make them rich, instead Rhew is the one who profited. He bought fancy cars, a beach house, and even a boat. Fraud of this magnitude can have a lasting impact not only financially, but emotionally for victims. The FBI and our law enforcement partners are committed to hold fraudsters who rip off hard working Americans accountable.”
NCSBI Special Agent in Charge Chris Cardwell commented: “Through the combined efforts of the SBI and our partner agencies, this individual was held accountable for exploiting his investors’ trust. Together, we will continue to pursue those who commit fraud and help protect our citizens.”
The investigation was conducted by Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation (NCSBI). Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura Jeanne Dildine prosecuted the case.
