Preying on the elderly, friends and relatives, John Bravata and Richard Trabulsy raised more than $50 million in three years from at least 440 investors, many of whom raided their retirement accounts to come up with cash, regulators allege. Securities and Exchange Commission filed charges last week to stop what it calls a Ponzi scheme show that Bravata, 41, of Brighton and Trabulsy, 26, of Northville used slick Internet videos and other means to separate investors from their money. Philliben and the SEC court filings said Bravata and Trabulsy promised investors returns of 8% to 12%. Pitching their fund to elderly people, many of whom raided their retirement accounts to invest, Bravata and Trabulsy raised more than $50 million from at least 440 investors since mid-2006. An investment scam in which operators use money from new investors to pay earlier investors is named for Charles Ponzi, who in the 1920s got thousands of New England residents to invest in postage stamp speculation. read more

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