Repeat Fraudster Gets 8 Years for $77M Belize Land Scheme

A California man with a long history of financial scams is headed back to prison, this time for orchestrating a $77 million real estate fraud tied to a luxury development in Belize.

Andris Pukke, who also went by “Marc Romeo” and “Andy Storm,” was sentenced to eight years by a Manhattan federal judge for leading the so-called “Sanctuary Belize” scheme, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York announced Tuesday.

Hundreds of victims, many retirees looking for vacation or retirement homes, bought lots in what was billed as a high-end, debt-free community. Few ever saw a single home built, according to prosecutors.

The pitch was ambitious from the start. As reported in 2018, the Federal Trade Commission called Sanctuary Belize the largest international real estate investment fraud it had ever encountered at the time.

Investors were allegedly told their lots in the Central American enclave would double or triple in value within a few years and that they’d eventually enjoy luxury amenities ranging from a U.S.-staffed hospital to an international airport. Pukke even ran ads on Fox News targeting retirees, according to the FTC.

But only about 10 percent of lots were ever developed.

Instead, prosecutors said, Pukke siphoned off nearly $10 million for himself, covering everything from a waterfront home renovation to child support. He also allegedly hid his role behind aliases and directed sales staff to lie about his involvement. According to the FTC, he even continued steering the scheme while serving time in prison on an earlier conviction.

In the Belize case, nearly 200 victims wrote to the court describing the loss of retirement savings and financial security.

The 56-year-old Newport Beach resident was ordered to forfeit nearly $10 million, serve three years of supervised release on top of the prison sentence and pay $120.2 million in restitution, previously ordered by the FTC.

This isn’t Pukke’s first brush with regulators. He previously faced a $172 million judgment tied to a debt-relief company called AmeriDebt and has convictions for mail fraud and obstruction of justice.

“This sentence removes a bad actor and serves as a warning to other would-be fraudsters,” U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said.