United States v. Ronald Totaro

Ronald Totaro was sentenced to thirty years in prison and fined $2.3 million after a jury convicted him of sixty-one counts of mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, engaging in unlawful money transactions and racketeering. Totaro now appeals a raft of issues involving his trial and sentence. We affirm.

Totaro operated an “advance fee” scheme in which he bilked investors out of millions of dollars. He controlled a web of corporations and associates who obtained advance fees from credit-risk individuals and small businesses in need of money. Posing as an international banker, Totaro…