Las Vegas ‘life coach’ sentenced for running Ponzi scheme to fund gambling addiction
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LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A man who ran a Ponzi scheme where, according to prosecutors, instead of investing money in the stock market, he wagered millions of dollars at casinos, will serve a year in jail.
Clark County District Court Judge Jasmin Lilly Spells sentenced Rodney Buckle, 66, on Thursday to one year in the Clark County Detention Center. As part of the sentence, Buckle must also pay $283,000 in restitution.
Metro police arrested Buckle in 2022 on a warrant for several fraud-related charges, including securities fraud and theft, the 8 News Now Investigators first reported that year.
Buckle, who ran businesses called “Rodd United, “Rodd U,” and “Rodd One,” called himself a “life coach and financial advisor,” investigators with the Nevada Secretary of State’s Office wrote in documents the 8 News Now Investigators obtained after his arrest. He was not licensed with the state or federal government, investigators said.
The business was located near Flamingo Road and Arville Street, documents said. An online posting about the business, known in the post as Rodd University, said “Rodd University is a membership-based social club providing a platform for research and discussing topics ranging from current events to the stock market.”
“Investors stated that Buckle showed them a spreadsheet on his computer listing their name, and the amount they invested with him,” investigators said. “The investment amounts ranged from anything to $100 to over $700,000.”
Investigators later found Buckle placed $2.4 million worth of wagers at the sports book at the Westgate Hotel and Casino where he lost $76,000. The casino eventually banned Buckle, investigators said. Buckle also had wagered $440,000 at the South Point casino and lost $434,000, investigators said.
“To deceive and manipulate others, and worse our seniors, for personal gain is both immoral and illegal,” Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford said in a statement. “Fraudsters exploiting hardworking Nevadans will continue to face investigation and prosecution by my office.”
