Latest ‘Mini-Madoff’ Arrested in Spain, Accused of $300 Million Fraud

Spanish police said they arrested a foreign-exchange operator suspected of running a $300 million Ponzi-type fraud that may have affected at least 100,000 investors in Europe, the U.S. and Latin America.

Bloomberg reports the latest "mini-Madoff," a reference to jailed con man Bernard Madoff, offered returns of as much as 10% to 20% monthly for investments in foreign currencies and instead used the money to buy real estate for himself and colleagues, according to a National Police statement today.

The man, German Cardona Soler, is 49 years old and a Spanish citizen, said a police spokeswoman who declined to be named, following agency policy. He was arrested in the Mediterranean city of Valencia. Two more people were apprehended and seven people were accused in relation to the suspected fraud, the statement said.