Carver, Cantin & Grantham LLC attorneys Thomas Carver and Shane Cantin released a defense statement seeking to exonerate Republic man Mark Brickey, who is accused of running a $14.5 million investment fraud scheme.
Brickey, a Christian County reserve deputy sheriff, was charged in May in a 30-count federal indictment of wire fraud, money laundering and failing to pay employment taxes. Brickey owned and operated companies that produced, marketed and sold video games. In the indictment, prosecutors accused Brickey of defrauding investors by using their funds for personal expenses unrelated to the development or marketing of videos games. None of his companies brought a video game to market, and the total revenue to the businesses was roughly $2,281, according to the
indictment.
In the July 10 defense statement, Brickey’s Springfield attorneys, Carver and Cantin, say his video game businesses were legitimate and simply failed.
“While a substantial loss of capital occurred, including a large investment by Mr. Brickey, all of the investors understood that if the venture succeeded, they stood to gain a great deal financially but also were well aware that entrepreneurial business ventures carry the risk of failure, and regrettably, that occurred in this instance,” the attorneys wrote in the statement. “Surely the government has bigger fish to fry than a small businessman trying to succeed in the highly competitive American economy.”
The attorneys also seek to distance Brickey from Christian County Sheriff Joey Kyle, who pleaded guilty in May to embezzling county funds and laundering the proceeds of a political supporter’s investment fraud scheme. The attorneys’ statement indicates the federal government inferred Kyle was involved in fundraising efforts for Brickey’s companies and play a part in the allegred fraud scheme. However, Carver and Cantin claim Kyle owes Brickey “tens of thousands” of dollars.[[In-content Ad]]
