Parish Pleads Guilty in $90 Million Investment Scam

Oct 05, 02:01 PM

Current Headlines: By Ben Werner, The State, Columbia, S.C.

Oct. 5--CHARLESTON -- Charleston economist Al Parish plead guilty Friday to swindling investors out of more than $90 million that he used on spending spree for guitars belonging to rock stars, diamond-encrusted pens, a purple Jaguar with a leopard-print roof and hundreds of gnomes.

Parish, 50, plead to two charges of mail or wire fraud and one count of providing false information to investigators at a 20-minute hearing in federal court in Charleston.

"I'm changing my plea on three of the charges, from not guilty to guilty," he told the judge.

He offered no explanation for his actions.

His attorney, Andy Savage, said Parish is cooperating with investigators to recover money taken from nearly 500 people and businesses. He also took more than $10.5 million from Charleston Southern University, where he taught. He spent it on himself, losing nearly $90 million before his accounts were frozen, authorities said.

Parish initially claimed amnesia when he was originally charged with 10 counts of fraud. The deal cut his potential maximum prison time to 45 years from more than 200 years. A sentencing hearing has not been scheduled.

Authorities have auctioned a large number of the items Parish bought, but have made only about $2.3 million.

Investigators said they expect to recover less than 10 percent of the missing money, and much of that will go to pay for the search and sale of the estate by a team of attorneys, accountants and appraisers.

Staff writer Andrew Shain and The Associated Press contributed.

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