PHILADELPHIA — In a move that could free up the remaining $32 million dollars due to credit unions, banks and others defrauded in a certificate of deposit Ponzi scheme, a Philadelphia district court recently denied a new motion filed by the defendants to overturn the $32 million verdict.

On Aug. 6, a Philadelphia district court denied the motion, according to David Marion, the court-appointed receiver in charge of distributing money to claimants. In June 2006, a federal jury returned a verdict for the receiver for damages totaling $32 million in litigation in the Marion v. TDI, Inc. et al case. The receiver had initiated the TDI Case in 2002 to recover from certain financial institutions, brokerage firms, accounting firms and related individuals the losses suffered by now-defunct Bentley Financial Services, Inc. Hundreds of credit unions, banks and individuals invested more than $370 million with the defendants. The scheme involved selling supposed bank-issued, federally insured securities that were actually uninsured.

The receiver said it will notify the Third Circuit court of the recent denied motion and will seek a schedule that moves the appellate process forward "as quickly as possible". As of June 30, the receiver said it has distributed nearly $340 million back to claimants.