A federal court has issued a temporary injunction and frozen the assets of Russell Todd Burkhalter, the alleged mastermind behind a $300 million Ponzi scheme that targeted over 2,000 investors.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) claims that from 2020 through at least June 2024, Burkhalter and his investment firm, Drive Planning, lured victims into investing millions of dollars in supposed real estate projects, with promises of 10% returns every three months.
According to the SEC, Drive Planning lacked the ability to deliver on these promises, and Burkhalter used the funds to sustain a lavish lifestyle and make Ponzi-like payments to earlier investors. The SEC alleges that Burkhalter used investors' money to purchase luxury items, including a $3.1 million yacht, a $2 million condo, and $4.6 million in private jet charters.
Aaron Danzig, Burkhalter's attorney, acknowledged the allegations but offered limited commentary. “While we cannot disclose specific details about the matter, Mr. Burkhalter cooperated with the SEC in submitting the receivership and preliminary injunction orders to the court,” Danzig stated. “Mr. Burkhalter denies the allegations contained in the SEC’s complaint and looks forward to quickly resolving this matter.”
In granting the SEC's request for emergency relief, the court emphasized that Burkhalter and Drive Planning deny any wrongdoing, and the court has not made a final determination on the case's merits. The SEC argued that immediate action was necessary to prevent the defendants from concealing the money allegedly obtained from victims.
The court's orders included freezing the defendants' assets and appointing a receiver to manage their funds. The SEC is pursuing a permanent injunction against Burkhalter and Drive Planning, along with monetary penalties, disgorgement of the alleged ill-gotten gains with interest, and a lifetime ban on Burkhalter serving as an officer or director of a publicly traded company.
Drive Planning, which operates offices in Atlanta, Fishers, Indiana, and St. Petersburg, Florida, is not registered with the SEC or the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). However, its website describes it as a "comprehensive financial group" offering investment and financial planning services. The website highlights access to private investments, including real estate—the subject of the SEC’s complaint—as well as renewable energy, film and television projects, among others.
Burkhalter, who registered with the SEC as an investment advisor in 2008 and worked briefly with four firms through 2014, has not been registered with the SEC or FINRA since. At Drive Planning, Burkhalter allegedly promoted unregistered securities called Real Estate Acceleration Loans (REAL), described as bridge loans to fund development projects with attractive interest rates.
The SEC contends that Burkhalter encouraged investors to dip into their savings, retirement accounts, and lines of credit to invest in REAL. By May of this year, the operation involved over 100 sales agents who falsely claimed that Drive Planning pooled investments in REAL to either loan money to real estate developers or collaborate with developers in joint ventures.
“In reality, Drive Planning lacked any legitimate profitable enterprise capable of generating the returns necessary to pay the promised 10% every three months,” the SEC asserts in its complaint. “Instead, in classic Ponzi fashion, Burkhalter used money from new investors to pay supposed ‘returns’ to existing investors while funding his luxurious lifestyle.”
