Southern District of New York · Friday, October 16, 2026
777 Partners founder pleads guilty in a fraud above $500 million
The File desk · Oct 16, 2026, 11:00 AM UTC
Status
Confirmed as the Southern District of New York’s Oct. 15, 2026 release. A guilty plea is an admission. The sentence is not set. The scheme description is the office’s account of the indictment and other filings.
- Confirmed
Joshua Wander, 45, of Florida, pleaded guilty before Judge J. Paul Oetken to
andLegal instrument
Wire fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343)
Using a phone line, the internet, or another wire to carry out a scheme to cheat someone out of money or property. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. Justice Department releases cited here do not always name the section.
. He agreed to forfeit at least $500 million. Sentencing is set for March 1, 2027.Legal instrument
Securities fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1348)
Knowingly running a scheme to cheat someone in connection with a security, or to get money by false statements in a purchase or sale of a security. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. The Southern District release on Joshua Wander does not cite the section.
- Confirmed
The office says each count carries a maximum of 20 years. It says the maximum is set by Congress and that the judge will decide the sentence.
- Confirmed
The office says Wander double-pledged and invented structured-settlement assets, directed altered bank statements, and used restricted lender money for expenses that included professional soccer teams.
Joshua Wander, founder and former chief executive of the Miami firm 777 Partners, pleaded guilty on Thursday to Legal instrument Using a phone line, the internet, or another wire to carry out a scheme to cheat someone out of money or property. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. Justice Department releases cited here do not always name the section. Legal instrument Knowingly running a scheme to cheat someone in connection with a security, or to get money by false statements in a purchase or sale of a security. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. The Southern District release on Joshua Wander does not cite the section.Wire fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343)
Securities fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1348)
The release is dated Thursday, Oct. 15, 2026. U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald announced the plea. Wander is 45 and lives in Florida. A plea is an admission of guilt. The prison term is still ahead.
The office says he pleaded guilty to Legal instrument Using a phone line, the internet, or another wire to carry out a scheme to cheat someone out of money or property. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. Justice Department releases cited here do not always name the section. Legal instrument Knowingly running a scheme to cheat someone in connection with a security, or to get money by false statements in a purchase or sale of a security. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. The Southern District release on Joshua Wander does not cite the section. Legal instrument Using a phone line, the internet, or another wire to carry out a scheme to cheat someone out of money or property. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. Justice Department releases cited here do not always name the section. Legal instrument Knowingly running a scheme to cheat someone in connection with a security, or to get money by false statements in a purchase or sale of a security. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. The Southern District release on Joshua Wander does not cite the section.Wire fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343)
Securities fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1348)
Wire fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343)
Securities fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1348)
As the office describes the indictment and other filings, 777 Partners started by financing structured settlements, then put money into airlines and professional sports teams. The firm did not have the money for those purchases. Wander directed that restricted funds from the settlement lenders be used for acquisitions and expenses, including the bill for a collection of professional soccer teams.
To get that money, the office says, he pledged hundreds of millions of dollars of structured-settlement assets the firm had never bought or had already pledged to someone else. He directed employees to alter bank statements so they showed cash the firm did not have.
In 2021 and 2022 he raised more than $200 million by selling preferred equity in 777 Partners and an affiliate, and misrepresented the firm’s finances, the office says. In March 2022 he sought a $20 million loan and gave the lender dozens of doctored bank statements. The office says he had spent millions of the misappropriated money on options trades.
By March 2023 a lender confronted him about double-pledged assets. The office says he blamed an old computer system, then said the double-pledging had been inadvertent. He resigned as chief executive in 2024.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homeland Security Investigations worked the case, with help from the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force is prosecuting it.
What is still unknown or disputed
- This desk did not open the indictment, the plea agreement, or a transcript. The scheme details are the office’s summary of those filings.
- The release’s count language is awkward: it says both “and
Legal instrument
Wire fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343)
Using a phone line, the internet, or another wire to carry out a scheme to cheat someone out of money or property. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. Justice Department releases cited here do not always name the section.
” and “one count ofLegal instrument
Securities fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1348)
Knowingly running a scheme to cheat someone in connection with a security, or to get money by false statements in a purchase or sale of a security. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. The Southern District release on Joshua Wander does not cite the section.
andLegal instrument
Wire fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343)
Using a phone line, the internet, or another wire to carry out a scheme to cheat someone out of money or property. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. Justice Department releases cited here do not always name the section.
, each of which” carries 20 years. The forfeiture figure is “at least $500,000,000.”Legal instrument
Securities fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1348)
Knowingly running a scheme to cheat someone in connection with a security, or to get money by false statements in a purchase or sale of a security. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. The Southern District release on Joshua Wander does not cite the section.
- No restitution figure, separate from forfeiture, is in the release.
Primary sources
Every claim in this story is drawn from the documents below. If a fetch failed, that is recorded on the card.
Source 1
Founder and former CEO of 777 Partners pleads guilty to $500 million fraud scheme
U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York · October 15, 2026
Joshua Wander pleaded guilty to
andLegal instrument
Wire fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343)
Using a phone line, the internet, or another wire to carry out a scheme to cheat someone out of money or property. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. Justice Department releases cited here do not always name the section.
. He agreed to forfeit at least $500,000,000. He pleaded guilty before Judge J. Paul Oetken. Sentencing is scheduled for March 1, 2027. The office says each count carries a maximum of 20 years.Legal instrument
Securities fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1348)
Knowingly running a scheme to cheat someone in connection with a security, or to get money by false statements in a purchase or sale of a security. The statute sets a maximum of 20 years. The Southern District release on Joshua Wander does not cite the section.
https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/founder-and-former-ceo-777-partners-pleads-guilty-500-million-fraud-scheme
Source 2
18 U.S.C. § 1343, Fraud by wire, radio, or television
Legal Information Institute · October 16, 2026
Whoever, having devised a scheme to defraud, transmits writings or signals by wire for the purpose of executing the scheme shall be fined or imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both. The Southern District release does not cite this section.
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1343
Source 3
18 U.S.C. § 1348, Securities and commodities fraud
Legal Information Institute · October 16, 2026
Whoever knowingly executes a scheme to defraud in connection with a security, or to obtain money by false pretenses in connection with the purchase or sale of a security, faces a maximum of 20 years. The Southern District release does not cite this section.
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1348