Western Springs Adviser Joseph Hennessy Sentenced to 3 Years for Midwest Opportunity Fund Ponzi Scheme

Case from 2014–2015 (U.S. Attorney's Office latest release: May 7, 2015). Published on Scammers.com Oct. 16, 2026; case status is current as of that date.

Joseph Hennessy, a Western Springs investment adviser who ran Resource Planning Group Inc. in Chicago, was sentenced on May 7, 2015, to 36 months in federal prison for using new investors' money, including funds taken from elderly clients, to pay off earlier investors in a private fund he operated, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois announced [1]. The loss was almost $1 million, prosecutors said.

How the scheme worked

According to court records cited by prosecutors [1]:

1. The fund: Hennessy formed the Midwest Opportunity Fund, a private equity fund that was supposed to buy into small and midsize Midwest companies.
2. The pitch: From May 2009 to February 2010 he offered investors 10% to 15% a year on notes maturing in two to six months, saying the money would go into those companies.
3. The reality: He used new money to pay off earlier fund investors.
4. Forged wires: He took money from the accounts of two elderly investors by forging their names on wire transfer forms, and used it to repay existing fund investors.

When indicted in April 2014, Hennessy was accused of obtaining about $2.9 million from at least 10 investors between 2007 and 2012, and of falsely claiming to personally guarantee the investments [2]. He pleaded guilty to one count.

"What you did involved a massive abuse of trust that needs to be punished," U.S. District Judge Harry D. Leinenweber said at sentencing. "People relied on you."

The person sentenced

Joseph Hennessy, 54, Western Springs, Ill.

• Charges: seven counts of wire fraud (indictment, April 2014).
• Plea (Dec. 16, 2014): one count of wire fraud.
• Sentence (May 7, 2015): 36 months in prison, three years of supervision and $645,900 in restitution [1].

Red flags

• Short-term notes paying 10% to 15% from your own adviser's side fund.
• Your adviser moving money between client accounts or asking you to sign blank or pre-filled wire forms.
• Personal guarantees from an adviser in place of audited financials.

What to do if you're targeted

1. Read every custodian statement and call the custodian directly about any withdrawal you didn't authorize.
2. Older investors can name a "trusted contact" with their brokerage, under FINRA rules, to help catch unauthorized activity.
3. Report adviser fraud to the SEC at sec.gov/tcr and the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 1-833-372-8311.

Case status (as of Oct. 16, 2026)

Defendant	Court	Status as of Oct. 16, 2026	Source
Joseph Hennessy, Western Springs, Ill.	N.D. Ill. (Judge Leinenweber)	Pleaded guilty Dec. 16, 2014; sentenced May 7, 2015, to 36 months; $645,900 restitution	[1], [2]

The sentence was imposed in 2015; we have not found a source on Hennessy's current custody status.

Sources

1. U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Illinois, "Chicago Investment Adviser Sentenced To 36 Months In $1 Million Fraud Scheme," May 7, 2015. https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/pr/chicago-investment-adviser-sentenced-36-months-1-million-fraud-scheme
2. U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Illinois, "Suburban Investment Advisor Indicted For Allegedly Defrauding At Least 10 Investors Of $2.9 Million," April 25, 2014. https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/pr/suburban-investment-advisor-indicted-allegedly-defrauding-least-10-investors-29-million

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