On November 24, 2000, a jury in the Central District of California convicted Eduardo Cartagena on 10 counts of wire fraud. Cartagena had managed boiler rooms in Burnaby, British Columbia, that were part of an operation called, at various times, Global Dividends International, Horizon 2000 Investments International, and Platinum International. 

The testimony at trial showed that the business name was changed often to avoid detection of the scheme. Cartagena’s stepfather and mother, Jacques and Christina Tanguay (see above), owned the operation and also operated a boiler room in Quebec. Cartagena had been arrested in May, 2000, after he entered the United States.

On May 14, 2001, Cartagena was sentenced to 70 months imprisonment and restitution to victims. The sentence was based in part on the jury’s specific finding that Cartagena had defrauded at least 10 victims over the age of 55, which made him eligible for an increased sentence under the section 2326 telemarketing fraud enhancement.

On February 5, 2001, Joseph M. Polyak was arrested in Blaine, Washington on the basis of a criminal complaint in the Central District of California alleging wire fraud violations.