This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A Draper man pleaded not guilty Wednesday to 15 criminal charges related to his alleged misappropriation of nearly $25 million from the retirement accounts of clients of his American Pension Services company.
Curtis L. DeYoung, 58, made his first appearance in federal court since he was indicted last month on 15 charges of mail fraud concerning account statements sent to clients that were allegedly designed to conceal the millions of dollars in missing funds.
After reviewing a financial statement, U.S. Magistrate Judge Evelyn Furse found that DeYoung was entitled to a court-appointed attorney and named Rob Hunt to represent him.
DeYoung then pleaded not guilty and Furse set a trial date for June 1, though such dates are almost always continued. A deadline of May 11 was set for a plea agreement.
DeYoung came under investigation by the FBI after he and his company were sued by the Securities and Exchange Commission in April 2014. The SEC complaint cited millions of dollars missing from accounts of people who had used APS to hold their Individual Retirement Accounts and 401(k)s while they direct their own investments.
Under federal law, DeYoung was prohibited from directing money from the accounts without written permission of the account holders and was not to act as an investment adviser.
DeYoung allegedly used the monies for investments with friends — most of which failed — personal expenses, loans and high salaries, according to court documents.
DeYoung was required to turn in his passport and Furse ordered him not to travel outside of Utah without permission from a pretrial officer.
He faces up to 20 years in prison on each charge if convicted and a maximum fine of up to $250,000.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacob Strain turned over to Hunt what he said were 230,000 records from American Pension Services that are possible evidence in the case. More evidence would be forthcoming, Strain said.