Jury convicts Stanford in $7 billion Ponzi scheme

HOUSTON — A Houston jury Tuesday convicted Texas financier R. Allen Stanford on all but one of the charges he faced for allegedly bilking investors out of more than $7 billion in one of the largest Ponzi schemes in U.S. history.

The federal jurors found Stanford guilty on 13 of 14 counts he faced. They found Stanford not guilty on one count of wire fraud.

The 61-year-old Stanford, whose net worth was once estimated at more than $2 billion, looked down when the verdict was read.

He faces up to 20 years in prison for the most serious charges but could be imprisoned for much longer if a judge orders his sentences be served consecutively.

Prosecutors say Stanford orchestrated a 20-year scheme that took billions through the sale of certificates of deposit from his Caribbean bank.

Stanford's attorneys blamed his ex-chief financial officer.

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