BUFFALO, N.Y.--U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that a federal grand jury in Buffalo has returned a six-count indictment charging Nicholas Mussolini, 30, of Williamsville, N.Y., with running a loan scheme which resulted in at least one victim suffering a financial loss of over $300,000. The charges carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, a fine of $250,000 or both.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Maura K. O'Donnell, who is handling the case, stated that according to the indictment, the defendant ran Preston Waters Corporation, a company which purported to be able to obtain large loans for other companies. Mussolini represented to victim companies that a deposit was required in order to secure loans on their behalf. As part of this scheme, a company known as Knob Hall Winery gave over $400,000 to the defendant, as a deposit for an approximately $11,000,000 loan. The defendant did not use this money to obtain a loan for Knob Hall Winery and instead used the funds for personal and other expenses, and to repay other victims of the fraud scheme.
The indictment is the culmination of an investigation on the part of Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Christopher M. Piehota.
The fact that a defendant has been charged with a crime is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
