More Ponzi Schemes Bubble to the Surface

WASHINGTON — Nearly a month after Bernard L. Madoff’s $50 billion Ponzi scheme was exposed, the Securities and Exchange Commission has discovered two more that allegedly bilked investors out of nearly $75 million.

The SEC yesterday charged Joseph S. Forte of Broomall, Pa., with fraudulently obtaining an estimated $50 million from as many as 80 investors through the sale of securities in the form of limited partnership interests in his firm, Joseph Forte, L.P. Forte told investors that he would invest the funds in an account that would trade in securities futures contracts, including S&P 500 stock index futures. He consistently lost money in the limited trading that he did, withdrew millions of dollars in “so-called” fees for his personal use based on the falsely inflated value of Forte LP, and used investor funds to repay other investors, the SEC said.