45 Year Prison Sentence in Collin County Investment Scheme

Texas State Securities Board

AUSTIN (News Release) - On May 24, 2022, Phillip Michael Carter was sentenced to serve 45 years in state prison by the 296th District Court of Collin County, Texas. The sentence was the result of recent convictions for perpetrating a real estate investment scheme that victimized more than 330 individuals, most of whom resided in North Texas. The Court also ordered Phillip Carter to pay around $30 million in restitution to these victims.

Phillip Carter and Shelly Noel Carter, his wife, were indicted by a grand jury in November 2018 and tried and convicted in March 2022. Phillip Carter, the principal of Texas Cash Cow Investments Inc. and North Forty Development Inc., was accused of raising capital that was supposed to be used to develop commercial and residential real estate. The evidence, however, showed that he used the victim’s money to pay expenses unrelated to the development of real estate.

At trial, the jury convicted both Phillip Carter and Shelly Carter. The court set Phillip Carter’s sentencing for May 24, 2022, when it handed down the 45-year sentence. A sentencing date for Shelly Carter is currently pending.

Phillip Carter’s co-defendants have already been successfully prosecuted, convicted and sentenced. For example, in July 2018, local radio personality Bob Guess, a sales agent working with Phillip Carter, was sentenced to serve 12 years in prison.  In June 2021, Richard Tilford, another sales agent working with Phillip Carter who also promoted worthless investments in an unrelated digital advertising company, was sentenced to serve 40 years in state prison for securities fraud and twelve concurrent 10-year terms for violating registration laws. Timothy Lloyd Booth, a former pastor of a McKinney church and the principal of the digital advertising company, was sentenced to serve 68 years in state prison for his role in the digital advertising investment scheme.

The Texas State Securities Board previously entered an Emergency Cease and Desist Order against Bob Guess and other parties accused of fraudulently dealing in securities in 2016. The agency’s work did not stop there with years of work to bring justice to Texas investors.

“The Texas State Securities Board vigorously works to stop fraudulent investment schemes and secure justice for victims of white-collar crime,” said Securities Commissioner Travis J. Iles. “We appreciate the good work of the Collin County District Attorney’s Office and the opportunity to work with the office to successfully prosecute these cases. These cases not only achieve redress for the defrauded but also level-the-playing field for legitimate businesses seeking capital.”

The Enforcement Division investigated Phillip Carter and his co-defendant and referred the criminal case to the Collin County District Attorney’s Office. Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis appointed agency attorneys, including Matthew Wise, Tina Lawrence, Kelsey Heaton, and Rachael Luna as special prosecutors and they assisted his office in prosecuting the cases. Commissioner Iles acknowledged their exceptional work, as well as the exceptional work of other agency personnel. They include Eliza Lujan, Zadie Stellar, Katy Miner, recently retired financial examiner Letha Sparks and recently retired attorney Dale Barron. The Agency was assisted in its investigation by the United States Secret Service.