A Florida man has pleaded not guilty to two federal wire-fraud charges alleging that he solicited money for nonexistent short-term investments, diverted the funds to personal expenses and gambling, and caused victims to lose at least $180,000, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois.
Makaio’ Kekoa is accused of running the alleged scheme between 2019 and February 2022 while residing in Illinois. The seven-page federal indictment identifies four Illinois residents as alleged victims and links the two criminal counts to interstate bank transfers of $50,000 and $5,000.
Kekoa now lives in Wimauma, Florida, and was formerly known as Lorenzo Hood, Lorenzo Chryssikos Hood or Zo. He entered his not-guilty plea during an arraignment in Chicago. The next status hearing is scheduled for September 24 before US District Judge Thomas Durkin.
The Two Charges Are Tied to Specific Bank Transfers
The indictment was filed under seal on June 18 in the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. It charges Kekoa with two violations of the federal wire-fraud statute.
Count One concerns an interstate transfer of approximately $50,000 made by a person identified as Victim D on June 21, 2021. Count Two concerns another transfer of approximately $5,000 from the same alleged victim on August 17, 2021. Both payments allegedly went into a bank account controlled by Kekoa.
Those two transfers provide the specific wire communications underlying the criminal counts. The broader alleged scheme includes additional victims and losses that are described in the indictment but are not charged as separate wire-fraud counts.
This distinction explains why an indictment alleging at least $180,000 in losses contains only two counts tied to $55,000 in transfers. Wire fraud is charged through particular interstate communications used to execute a scheme. Prosecutors do not need to charge every payment or message described as part of the alleged conduct.
Each count carries a maximum statutory sentence of 20 years in federal prison. That does not mean Kekoa would receive 40 years if convicted. Any sentence would be determined by the court using federal statutes, the advisory sentencing guidelines and the facts established through the proceedings.
Prosecutors Say the Investments Never Existed
Kekoa allegedly told prospective investors that he had access to short-term, high-yield investment opportunities. The indictment does not identify an asset class, trading strategy, financial institution or underlying business connected to those opportunities.
It also does not state the return investors were promised or how quickly the purported investments were supposed to mature. The government’s allegation is more fundamental: prosecutors claim no such investment opportunities existed.
The indictment says Kekoa solicited money from the four Illinois victims by representing that he would invest on their behalf. He also allegedly told them that he and several associates were placing their own money into the same opportunities.
Claims that the promoter and the promoter’s associates are investing alongside customers can reduce perceived risk. They create the impression that the person selling the opportunity has performed due diligence and will suffer the same financial consequences if the investment fails.
Instead of investing the money, prosecutors allege that Kekoa used it for personal purposes, including gambling. The indictment does not provide a transaction-by-transaction accounting of the alleged spending or identify the amount used for gambling.
Short-duration returns have appeared repeatedly in federal fraud cases. In a Missouri matter, prosecutors obtained an asset freeze against a promoter accused of offering returns of 10% to 15% within 30, 60 or 90 days. The court order in that case preserved assets but did not determine whether the allegations were true.
A larger Illinois prosecution involves film producer Jason Cloth, who pleaded not guilty to charges connected to an alleged $100 million investment scheme. The Kekoa case is separate and considerably smaller, but both indictments rely on allegations that investors were told their money would enter identifiable opportunities when prosecutors say it was diverted elsewhere.
Fake Associates Allegedly Sent Reassuring Messages
The most detailed allegation concerns text messages that investors allegedly believed came from Kekoa’s associates. Prosecutors claim Kekoa controlled the phones used to send those messages and caused the communications to appear as though they came from other people.
The indictment describes them as “lulling text messages.” In fraud prosecutions, lulling communications are messages sent after money has been obtained to reassure victims, delay complaints or encourage further payments.
According to the government, the messages falsely represented that investor money was being used for the investors’ benefit. Kekoa also allegedly told victims that their funds had been invested even though prosecutors say he had already misappropriated them.
The alleged use of multiple identities differs from a conventional fake trading website, but it serves a similar purpose. The promoter is no longer the only apparent source confirming the investment. A supposed associate can provide independent-looking reassurance even when both sides of the conversation are controlled by the same person.
Fake interfaces and false account balances have been used for the same lulling effect in online investment schemes. A Hong Kong insurance agent recently lost $3.3 million after a fraudulent application displayed returns exceeding 800%. In that case, the balance shown in the application did not represent real trading activity.
The Kekoa indictment does not allege the use of a website, cryptocurrency or fabricated account dashboard. It describes a more direct structure based on personal solicitation, bank transfers and text messages.
The Government Seeks at Least $180,000 in Forfeiture
Prosecutors allege that the victims incurred combined losses of at least $180,000. The indictment also seeks a personal forfeiture money judgment for at least that amount if Kekoa is convicted.
Forfeiture and restitution are related but distinct. Forfeiture removes proceeds traceable to an offence and transfers them to the government. Restitution is a court order requiring a convicted defendant to compensate victims for qualifying losses.
The Justice Department says restitution would be mandatory if Kekoa is convicted. The final amount could depend on evidence documenting what each victim transferred, any money returned and whether other losses were directly caused by the charged conduct.
The forfeiture allegation allows the government to pursue substitute property if the original proceeds cannot be found, have been transferred to another person, have lost value or were mixed with other assets. It does not establish that the government has already located $180,000 in recoverable property.
Even after a conviction and restitution order, recovery can take years when proceeds have been spent or moved. In a separate case, 14 investment-fraud victims received $332,703 more than a decade after the defendant’s conviction, illustrating the difference between obtaining a judgment and collecting enough assets to pay victims.
Why the Case Is Being Prosecuted in Chicago
Kekoa currently resides in Florida, and the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office assisted the FBI investigation. The criminal case is in Chicago because the alleged conduct took place partly in the Northern District of Illinois and the four identified victims lived there.
The indictment also alleges that the two charged bank transfers travelled through interstate commerce. That interstate element provides the federal jurisdiction required for wire-fraud charges.
Kekoa’s use of different names is included in the indictment to identify the defendant and connect the alleged conduct across the relevant period. The filing does not allege that changing his name or using the nickname Zo was itself a crime.
Identity concealment can become part of a fraud charge when it is allegedly used to mislead investors about who controls an account or communication. In another recent case, a federal jury convicted Daniel Chartraw after prosecutors said aliases and false statements were used to conceal his control of investment businesses and accounts.
There is no allegation in the Kekoa indictment that he operated a registered investment adviser, broker or fund. The filing also does not say whether the alleged victims knew him through a personal, professional or online relationship.
The September Hearing Is the Next Scheduled Step
Kekoa has pleaded not guilty to both counts. A status hearing on September 24 will allow the court and lawyers to address the progress of the case, including discovery, motions and possible scheduling.
No trial date was included in the Justice Department’s announcement. The government is represented by Assistant US Attorney Kartik Raman, while the FBI’s Chicago Field Office is leading the investigation with assistance from authorities in Hillsborough County.
The indictment contains allegations rather than findings of guilt. Prosecutors must prove the charged offences beyond a reasonable doubt, and the alleged $180,000 loss and forfeiture amount remain unproven unless established through a guilty plea or trial.