A federal jury has convicted a Lake George man of orchestrating a years-long investment fraud and failing to pay taxes on the income it generated.
Michael E. Conner, 56, was found guilty Thursday of 22 counts of wire fraud and two counts of failing to file tax returns, following an eight-day trial in Albany before U.S. District Judge Mae A. D’Agostino. He was immediately taken into custody.
Prosecutors showed that Conner, an inventor with patents for household items like a heated knife and rotatable refrigerator shelf, misled investors for over a decade. Since 2008, Conner raised approximately $6 million from individuals across Virginia, North Carolina, and New York, claiming the funds were to market and sell his inventions. However, he never sold a patent or earned revenue.
In 2020 and 2021, while living in Warren County, Conner solicited more than $393,000 in new loans, which he claimed were for resolving IRS issues and funding legal and accounting services tied to pending patent deals. Instead, he used the money for luxury dining, French wine, and concert tickets.
The jury also found Conner guilty of willfully failing to file federal tax returns for 2020 and 2021, despite treating the loans as personal income and having no job or savings during that time. He was acquitted on one wire fraud charge and two counts related to earlier tax years.
Conner now faces up to 20 years in prison on each wire fraud count and up to a year on each tax charge. His sentencing is scheduled for August 14.
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