Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime News
“He was essentially throwing this family’s money away, and they gave him more and more over time,” Sampson said.
Van Auken created a lengthy paper trail to back up his lies. He told the family their investments were profitable.
But warning signs did start to show. The Montana woman noticed a change in Van Auken’s behavior, and he admitted lying to her about some of the investments.
The victim did not know where to turn until a friend encouraged her to contact the FBI.
“The victim in this case was very brave,” Sampson said. “She made a mistake in getting Van Auken involved in her family’s lives, but she contacted us and saw the case through to the end.”
Investigators began digging into the financials and learned that where the actual money went was not consistent with what the documents said.
The family collectively lost more than $700,000. Much of that was the woman’s parents’ retirement accounts, and some of the funds belonged to the original victim herself and her young adult children.
The impact was devastating. While the younger victims will have time to recover financially, the woman’s parents are now deceased, and they lost their entire retirement savings. They’d hoped to pass those funds on to their children and grandchildren.
Additionally, Van Auken claimed to be paying taxes on the family’s funds, but he never did. So the surviving relatives are also dealing with tax debt, Sampson said.
Van Auken pleaded guilty in January 2020 to wire fraud, money laundering, and filing a false tax return. In May 2020, he was sentenced to 28 months in prison.