Little-Known Actor Accused Of Running $227M Movie Ponzi Scheme

LOS ANGELES, CA — FBI agents arrested a little-known Beverlywood actor accused of masterminding a $227 million Ponzi scheme centered on the film industry, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced Wednesday.

According to the justice department, Zachary Joseph Horwitz, 34 duped private investment firms with false claims their money would be used to acquire licensing rights to films that HBO and Netflix had agreed to distribute abroad, particularly in Latin America. Horwitz goes by the screen name “Zach Avery,” with small parts in films such as "You're Not Alone." Private investment firms have transferred about $227 million to 1inMM Capital, which defaulted on all these underlying notes, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday. Horwitz was charged with wire fraud and faces up to 20 years in prison.

Prosecutors allege that over the course of about five years, Horwitz solicited investors to invest in his company – 1inMM Capital LLC – to purchase regional distribution rights to films that could then be licensed to online platforms such as Netflix and HBO. Horwitz provided promotional materials to investors that claimed 1inMM Capital offered “safe” investments because “we receive confirmation from each of our outputs indicating their desire to acquire the rights to any title we purchase PRIOR to us releasing funds for the film,” according to the affidavit.

But that's not how he used the funds, according to federal prosecutors. Instead of acquiring film rights, he used victims money to repay earlier investors and fund his lavish lifestyle, including the purchase of a $6 million Beverlywood residence.

During that court appearance Tuesday, a magistrate judge set Horwitz's bond at $1 million, but he will not be released from custody until the bond is approved. An arraignment was scheduled for May 13.

The scheme allegedly began in 2015, when investment firms began entering into a series of 6-month or 12-month promissory notes with 1inMM Capital.

To convince investors he was legitimate, the affidavit states, Horwitz provided investors with fake license agreements, as well as fake distribution agreements with Netflix and HBO, all of which allegedly contained forged or fictional signatures. Despite Horwitz's claim of "solid relationships" with online platforms, representatives for Netflix and HBO have denied that their companies engaged in any business with Horwitz or 1inMM Capital, the affidavit states.

Investors started to complain after 1inMM Capital began defaulting on notes at various times in 2019, according to the affidavit. To prolong the scheme in the wake of mounting defaults, Horwitz provided excuses that were purportedly given by Netflix and HBO, forwarding to investors false correspondence with Netflix and HBO in which Horwitz again fraudulently used the identities of Netflix or HBO employees, prosecutors say.