Duluth broker and Florida attorney charged over alleged Borg Global Ponzi schemes taking nearly $2 million

What happened

FOX 5 Atlanta reported on 21 October 2026 that a federal indictment alleges Roosevelt Tobias 'Toby' Bailey, 70, of Duluth, Georgia, ran two Ponzi schemes through his company, Borg Global, from October 2018 through October 2022, collecting nearly $2 million from investors. According to prosecutors, one program promised to double investments by buying and reselling precious metals and stones, and another promised returns of up to 16 times the investment within 30 to 90 days. The indictment alleges the money was not used for either program but diverted to personal and business accounts and partly used to pay earlier investors. Florida attorney Alvin Jones, 58, of Tampa, is alleged to have routed money from his law firm's trust accounts to Bailey and kept a portion. Bailey faces seven wire fraud counts and money laundering counts; Jones faces money laundering conspiracy and money laundering counts. Bailey was arraigned on 16 October and Jones on 21 October. The FBI investigated with help from the SEC. The charges are allegations and both men are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

How the scam works

Ponzi schemes pay early investors with money from later ones, creating the appearance of real profits while the promised business doesn't exist or isn't being carried out. In this case, prosecutors say investors were told their money would buy and resell precious metals and stones, or would multiply up to 16 times within 30 to 90 days. Returns of that size in such a short time are a classic sign of investment fraud.

The indictment also alleges that money passed through a law firm's trust accounts, which can make a scheme look more trustworthy because investors may assume an attorney's involvement means their funds are protected. Schemes like this often collapse when new money slows and payouts to earlier investors stop. The charges are allegations, and both men are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.

Source

FOX 5 Atlanta, report on the Borg Global Ponzi scheme charges (published 21 October 2026), citing the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia.