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Jason Cloth, a financier with executive producer credits on “Joker,” “Babylon,” and “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” has been indicted in Chicago on allegations that he ran a $100 million Ponzi scheme.
Cloth, 60, faces seven counts of wire fraud for allegedly lying to investors about how their money would be used. According to the indictment, he took money intended for a film project and a gaming platform and used it to pay off investors in a Canadian real estate project.
Cloth was arrested on Tuesday in Los Angeles, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago.
Cloth has faced several suits from investors who accused him of absconding with their money. In one case in Chicago, a group of investors alleged they were swindled out of $80 million, which was intended to finance “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” “Monkey Man,” and other films.
“He’s been at this for so long,” said Alexander Loftus, a Chicago attorney who filed the suit. “The core Cloth sales pitch is that he invested in ‘Joker’ and that was a huge financial success. He didn’t tell them he way oversubscribed and stiffed the investors … Every time, he uses the new thing to pay off the first thing.”
The plaintiffs reached a class action settlement last year with Sanford Schmidt, the adviser who recommended the investment to clients. The plaintiffs are still seeking to recoup some $60 million from Schmidt’s insurance carrier. Loftus said there are 137 investors in the plaintiff class.
Cloth’s company, Creative Wealth Media Finance, declared bankruptcy in Canada in 2023. The Ontario Securities Commission alleged that Cloth had raised some $500 million from 500 investors across the U.S. and Canada over the preceding decade. The OSC accused Cloth of raising more money for film and TV projects than was required, and then diverting the money to other uses.
According to the OSC, Cloth’s company made $50 million in unsecured loans to a developer to build condominiums in Kingston, Ontario, which had not been repaid at the time of the bankruptcy.
After a two-day civil trial in West Palm Beach, Fla., in 2024, Cloth was ordered to pay $19.6 million to an investor who had put money into a TV project. Cloth did not attend the trial, telling a judge beforehand that he was incapable of representing himself and planned to be at the Cannes Film Festival at the time.
In an email to Variety at the time, he said it was a “very trying time for me.”
Cloth appealed the jury verdict in that case, but it was upheld by the appellate court last year. Cloth’s civil attorneys did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.
The indictment seeks reimbursement of $12.25 million. Each count of wire fraud also carries a theoretical maximum of 20 years in prison. The Chicago Field Office of the FBI is seeking additional victims.
English (US) ·