Oceanside woman gets 3-year prison term for Ponzi scheme

A federal judge Friday sentenced an Oceanside woman to 3 years in prison for running a Ponzi scheme that authorities say bilked investors out of nearly $7 million.

In a tearful plea for leniency, Laurie Schneider, 39, told U.S. District Judge Denis Hurley she knew some people lost their life savings and was "terribly sorry" for their pain and hardship.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Canty read two victim statements in court, including one from Mark Morewitz, 45, of San Francisco that said Schneider "seduced all of us and became embedded in our lives while stealing every cent we had."

Morewitz -- who spoke of $2.2 million in losses -- said afterward he was glad Schneider was headed to prison, but wished the sentence was harsher.

Schneider pleaded guilty in February to one count of wire fraud and had faced up to about 5 years in prison under sentencing guidelines.

According to her plea terms, Schneider also agreed to forfeit $1 million to the government and pay back her victims.

Authorities have said Schneider defrauded 30 investors by running a real estate scheme and also getting people to invest in a phony deal to buy industrial equipment in China and sell it for much more domestically.

Schneider's attorneys asked the judge Friday to depart from sentencing guidelines, arguing that she is a mother with three children under the age of 4 -- including one who is autistic -- and that she didn't use the money to fund a luxurious lifestyle.

"There are no Swiss bank accounts. There's no money hidden," defense attorney Ronald Fischetti said in court.

Hurley, who said he considered Schneider's children in deciding her sentence, compared her actions to stealing someone's wallet at gunpoint.

"Some of these investors suffered greatly," the judge said.

Schneider declined to comment after leaving the courtroom.

The U.S. attorney's office said in a statement that Schneider enriched herself "through her lies and fraud."

Schneider will also have to serve 3 years of supervised release after prison.