Attorney General James and Acting Commissioner Hiller Announce Sentencings in Ponzi Scheme

Carl Carro Sentenced to Up to 8 Years and James Doyle Sentenced to Five Years’ Probation
for Scheme that Stole More Than $1 Million from Unsuspecting Investors

NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James and New York State Department of Taxation and Finance Acting Commissioner Amanda Hiller announced the sentencings of Carl Carro (61, of Delaware County) and James Doyle (74, of Westchester County) for operating a nearly decade-long Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors in New York and throughout the nation of more than $1 million. Carro pled guilty last October to Money Laundering in the Second Degree (class C felony), Securities Fraud under the Martin Act (class E felony), Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree (class E felony), and Repeated Failure to File Personal Income Tax Returns (class E felony). Doyle pled guilty in July 2021 to Money Laundering in the Second Degree (class C felony) and Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree (class E felony). Carro was sentenced to 4 to 8 years in prison and Doyle was sentenced to five years’ probation. As part of their respective sentences, Carro and Doyle agreed to pay a total of more than $1 million in judgments to the victims of their scheme. 

“New Yorkers deserve the peace of mind of knowing that when they invest their hard-earned money, it won’t be stolen by shameless fraudsters,” said Attorney General James. “For nearly a decade, Carl Carro and James Doyle pocketed more than $1 million dollars from investors who trusted them with their funds. I thank the Department of Taxation and Finance and Acting Commissioner Hiller for their critical support in our efforts to bring these bad actors to justice. My office will always work to protect the interests of New Yorkers and ensure anyone seeking to take advantage or violate state laws is held accountable.”

“These are not victimless crimes,” said Acting Commissioner Hiller. “Anyone who attempts to defraud New Yorkers also deprives the state of tax revenue used for vital public programs and services and must be held accountable. We’ll continue to work with Attorney General Letitia James, her office, and all levels of law enforcement to root out all forms of tax fraud and level the playing field for all New Yorkers.”

Yesterday's sentencings are the result of a joint investigation by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) and the Department of Taxation and Finance’s (DTF) Criminal Investigations Division. In January 2021, both Carro and Doyle were arrested and charged with multiple crimes for their roles in the Ponzi scheme. Last May, Carro was charged for failing to pay more than $75,000 in New York state taxes over a six-year period. 

As outlined in the complaints, Carro and Doyle solicited investments in their companies, Endeavor Management Solutions and Endeavor Consultancy, from more than 50 individuals in New York and other states between January 2012 and December 2020. Carro and Doyle misrepresented to investors that Endeavor was a headhunting firm hired by prestigious clients to find candidates for openings on their boards of directors. They first lured investors with false promises of interviews for board positions and then offered purported no-risk investment opportunities in their firm. The two defendants promised their victims that investments would be held in an untouched cash reserve fund that allegedly held over $1 million and guaranteed a 10 to 20 percent return on investment after 30 days. 

An OAG audit revealed that investor funds were used for personal expenses and to pay back previously defrauded investors. According to the audit, the defendants spent nearly $500,000 on cash withdrawals, more than $200,000 to pay personal credit card bills, more than $57,000 on pet expenses, and more than $350,000 to pay previously defrauded investors. Altogether, Carro and Doyle stole between $15,000 and $30,000 from each of the more than 50 victims, with total losses exceeding $1 million. The overwhelming majority of the stolen funds were diverted for Carro’s personal benefit, including over $170,000 in restitution to pay the victims of Carro’s prior criminal cases. The audit also revealed that Carro failed to report over $2 million in taxable income, which included the amount he stole from victims, and failed to remit more than $100,000 in taxes owed to New York state since at least 2012.

Attorney General James thanks DTF’s Criminal Investigations Division, the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office, the Otsego County District Attorney’s Office, the New York state Department of Financial Services, New Hampshire’s Bureau of Securities Regulations, Maine’s Office of Securities, and Connecticut’s Department of Banking for their valuable assistance. 

This case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorney General/Director of the Combatting Upstate Financial Frauds Scheme Initiative Philip V. Apruzzese and Senior Counsel Maureen Grosdidier of the Criminal Enforcement and Financial Crimes Bureau (CEFC). Analytical work was provided by Legal Support Analyst Jamirah Williams-Johnson, under the supervision of Supervising Analyst Paul Strocko and Deputy Supervising Analyst Jayleen Garcia. Forensic accounting was performed by Forensic Auditor Investigator Eamon Murphy and former Principal Auditor Investigator Meaghan E. Scotellaro, under the supervision of Chief Auditor Kristen Fabbri and Deputy Chief Auditor Sandy Bizzarro of the Forensic Audit Section. CEFC is led by Bureau Chief Stephanie Swenton and Deputy Bureau Chief Joseph G. D’Arrigo. 

Detective Supervisors Mitchell J. Paurowski and William Lynch of the Investigations Bureau handled the criminal investigation, under the supervision of Assistant Chief Samuel Scotellaro and Deputy Chief Juanita Bright of the Major Investigations Unit. The Investigations Bureau is led by Chief Investigator Oliver Pu-Folkes. Both CEFC and the Investigations Bureau are part of the Division for Criminal Justice, which is led by Chief Deputy Attorney General José Maldonado. 

Initial complaints were received by OAG’s Investor Protection Bureau, which is led by Bureau Chief Shamiso Maswoswe and Deputy Bureau Chief Kenneth Haim. The Investor Protection Bureau is a part of the Division for Economic Justice, which is led by Chief Deputy Attorney General Chris D’Angelo. Both the Division for Criminal Justice and the Division for Economic Justice are overseen by First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy.