A South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä man is facing federal charges and a federal lawsuit alleging that he defrauded American and international investors of $370,000 since 2021 through investment schemes marketed on social media.
Theodore Miller, 34, was arrested in August by U.S. Marshals on allegations of wire fraud. This week, a grand jury indicted Miller on 15 charges in the case, most dealing with fraud.
Miller showcased a lavish lifestyle on social media, according to court documents. However, the federal indictment says Miller had poor credit, was delinquent on taxes and bills, and had defaulted on loans.
Bigley Avenue development
The indictment details two fraud schemes Miller is accused of using on his victims.
The first promised a return on investment after Miller developed real estate on Bigley Avenue. However, Miller didn’t own the property, according to court documents.
Investors from Florida and California sent at least $60,000 for that project, according to court documents.
Two other investors, from Florida and Texas, put $30,000 total into the remodeling of duplexes on Bigley Avenue that Miller also never owned, according to the indictment.
The second scheme involved Miller’s website, , which was still active at publication of this report.
According to the indictment, Bear-Lute was a “pooled real estate investment vehicle.†Miller misrepresented several aspects of Bear-Lute, the indictment states, including its prior performance, the safety of the investment and his own financial status.
According to the website, potential investors could get involved with Bear-Lute for as little as $100. More than 100 people invested over $200,000 in Bear-Lute, the indictment states.
Miller told investors they could pull their money out within 60 days, but he did not honor those requests, according to the indictment. The lawsuit against Miller states that Bear-Lute made only one payment to one investor, “a fraction of the promised return.â€
Miller also failed to tell investors that the West Virginia Securities Commission had ordered him to stop operating Bear-Lute in 2022.
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Miller raised $207,000 after the order was issued, according to court documents. He then used those invested funds for personal and business expenses, the indictment states.
In addition to fraud, Miller is charged with money laundering and obstruction.
Lawsuit
Miller, his businesses and his mother, Deanna Drumm, also have been sued by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The complaint states that, overall, Miller raised about $370,000 from 170 investors in 37 states and five foreign countries.
Miller’s companies were never registered with the commission, according to court documents.
The SEC is suing to stop Miller’s companies from operating.
Drumm is included in the lawsuit because she reportedly received nearly $170,000 in investor funds through the alleged scheme. Court documents say she is the administrative manager for Miller’s companies and should be required to repay the money she benefited from.
Miller had traveled the world for the past few years, according to court documents. After his arrest, he was held in the South Central Regional Jail, where he remained as of publication of this report, according to the Division of Corrections website.
Miller is represented by the Federal Public Defender’s Office, which does not speak with local media. Court documents do not make clear if Drumm has legal counsel.
Social media presence
Some of Miller’s social media is still online, including TikTok videos and a website about a nonprofit called Homeless Savior that was registered a few months ago in ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä.
In a profanity-laced video posted in January that has had more than 268,000 views, Miller promises more than a 20% return on investment from .
“The website’s kind of ... old,†he says in the video. “But it’s because we’ve been doing this ... for a long ... time. I’m not a tech guy.â€
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