New-York tribune., 1920-08-21
Court Names 3
Receivers for
Ponzi Affairs
Bro,ller-in-Law of Boston
Adventurer i'm Finance
and His Agent Arrested
OH Charge of Larceny
Hearings Begin To-day
Rival Concern, Also Placed
in Receiverslaip, May Pay
90 Per Gent of Debts

BOSTON, Aug. 20.-Settlemcnt Of
the affairs of Charles Ponzi. whose
scheme of high finance was stopped
with millions of dollars of the public's
money tied up in it. was advanced to-
day with the appointment of three re-
ceivcrs.
At their suggestion James NJ. Ohm
stead, referee in bankruptcy, was as
signed to take testimony for them, and
hearings will be begun to morrow with
the object of rounding up all possible
information of assets available to the
receivers.
The Old Colony Foreign Exchange
Company, a rival Of Ponzi in Offering
high rates of interest for investments,
also was placed in receivership by
Judge Morton. John Z. Hannigan, of
this city, a lawyer, was named as re-
coiver.
Another arrest was made when
Ponzi's brother-in-law, Rinaldo Bos
SELF, surrendered himself to the local
PO44NS anu Was ilt4N oH q Nudi ~ ~
larceny Of $500. Bossclli is said to
have acted as an agent for Ponzl's
company His home is in the North
End, where it is understood he OBJ
t&ined many clients among the foreign
| population. He furnished $4,000 bonds
fol appearance at a hearing tomorrow
Ponzi to Surrender Property
Ponzi, brought rom the East Cam
bridge jail to the Federal Court, under
went formal examination as an cal
/ legged bankrupt agreeing to surren-
der all his property TO meet the claims
! aganst him. He has estimated his
assets at S4,000,000, While official re-
ports aud estimates of his liabilities
place them between 100000 and ST.
100000, with q scaling down on many
notes of the so per cent profit which
he promised investors, and possible
recovery of this amount from those
! already paid.
With the probability that settlement
of claims Will be on the basis of
pared down by approximately one
third
PonM asserted Yesterday that he
had paid out ST, 600 Some Of these
payments were refunds Of actual in
Nastments only, hundreds Of persons
having FASTENED to abandon their
promised profits in the run of with
drawals which marked several Of the
late stages of the operations Of Ponzi's
Securities Exchange Company. Ac-
cordingly, The amount OF money paid
out by Ponzi in interest, and subject
to action by the receivers, should it
be held that undue preference was
givoa the persons who received it,
would be approximately $2,000,0 900
Hearing To Be Public
The hearings on Fonts affairs will
be public, William Z. Sears chair
nam of the receivers. announced
Ponz was before the receivers for
Interrogation this Afternoon. but alb
sencc OF his counsel caused tne referee
and the receivers 10 pos -pone until
tomorrow morning the first OF the
sessions.
The receivers, who in addition to
Mr. Sears are John f. Perkins and
Edward A. Vhurston, were appointed
en- a petition brought against Ponzi
as an individual No action was taken
on the petition in which John S. Don
dcro is named as q partner. Counsel
for Dondoro announced tonight that
they would file in the Federal court
tomorrow petition for an immediate
jury trial on this petition. asserting
THAT Dondcro was not a partner OF
Ponzi, WAS not involved in his failure,
and had no creditors.
or the receivers. Sears and Thurston
arc lawyers, and Perkins a business
man. Sears appeared as the repre-
sentative Of the Legal Aid Society OF
this city, and in behalf Of some of the
creditors. Thurston was formerly chair
man of the KepublcAp State Commit
tee. Perkins was formerly secretary
and treasurer of the Calumet q Hecla
Mining Company.
Creditors May Get so Per Cent
Belief that creditors Of the Old
Colony Foreign Exchange Company
would receive so per cent of their IN
vestment was expressed to the court
by Robert Gallagher, counsel for the
company This figure is considerably
higher than the estimate of Attorney
General Allen Of Massachusetts, who
said yesterday that the visable assets
amounted to something like $150,000,
and that the total of the company S
business in notes was probably $780,
MIR. Gallagher to!a Inc court that,
aside from the assets III the possession
O. Attorney General Allen and the po-
ice, there was deposit o. S 500 in
Boston bank in the name OF the wife
Of the president of the company
Charles BrightwsN a deposit in a
New York bank OF $4,000, and the of
Ace furniture.
Judge Morton said that the receiver
ship would cover ali the three petitions
fled in The case, including one against
the company and one each against
President Brightwel and the secre-
tary, Raymond Meyers. In this respect
the proceeding differed from that in
the Ponzi receiveYship, where only ono
OF the several petitions filed was acted
on.
Agn Q gsx