BILLINGS, Vt.
(AP) A billionaire’s wife has been arrested on fraud charges, accused of running a “ponzi scheme” that bilked investors of more than $1 billion and defrauded the state of millions more, authorities said.
Betsy DeVos, 51, was arrested Tuesday after a two-year investigation that netted a slew of convictions, including three of felony fraud.
The charges stem from a scheme in which the DeVos family had more than 4 million shares of its own stock in a company that was owned by a family member and sold through an unlicensed investment vehicle.
The DeVos family is one of the richest in the country.
They own the Michigan-based Renaissance Technologies, which makes solar panels, wind turbines and other solar technology.
The family is also among the most politically active, with DeVos and her husband the co-chair of President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign.