Lure of quick money costs investors millions

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- The victims say it started out as a no-risk investment that turned into a big nightmare.

"I think it was the lure of quick money. The greed factor, it short circuits some of your defenses," said Jack Thomas, a fraud victim.

Thomas admits he should have done his homework before investing in a foreign currency investment, but the deal seemed just too good to pass up. Other family members were already involved with Alex Efrosman and were boasting about making a lot of money.

"They were telling everybody in the family, 'This is a good deal.' In six months, he had gotten probably 10 to 15 percent of his initial investment back already in his account with his name on it," said Thomas.

The family thought they were making money based on fake statements Efrosman was supplying.

"I wanted to invest for my grandchildren's education," said Thomas.

Literally, days after Thomas wired his money, Efrosman fled the country with Thomas' $50,000 as well as the $7 million from more than 150 other victims.

"You're stunned in the beginning, and then when you start to think this money is never coming back and this guy just took off with it," said Thomas.

Postal inspectors say Efrosman was a seasoned veteran in the scam business.

"He had no remorse because he did it not once but twice. He did the same scam again," said U.S. Postal Inspector Michael DelGiudice.

He was indicted on fraud charges years before this scam.

"Efrosman was a highly very intelligent person. Instead of using his intelligence to benefit people, he used it to scam people," said DelGiudice.

The money mostly went to personal use.

"He had expensive habits," said DelGiudice. "He had a drug problem, so he was using it for drugs, he bought expensive cars, he had a Porsche, he would do work on his apartment."

Postal inspectors say always check out a potential investment online. In fact, a simple Internet search would have turned up Efrosman's past record.