Las Vegas woman sentenced to 6.5 years for bankruptcy fraud, perjury, other charges

Tuesday, May 20, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

Violet M. Marsh, 66, a former Seattle resident now of Las Vegas, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Thomas Zilly. Following her prison term, she faces 3 years of probation. She also was ordered to pay $1.76 million in restitution.

Marsh was convicted in March of seven counts of mail fraud, two of bankruptcy fraud, 10 of perjury and three of money laundering.

She was one of 127 people nationwide whose indictments were announced on Feb. 29, 1996, by Attorney General Janet Reno as part of a Justice Department crackdown on bankruptcy fraud.

One of the witnesses against her was her son, Raymond Marsh, 35, who pleaded guilty in February to four counts of bankruptcy fraud, mail fraud and perjury. He was sentenced earlier this month to five years probation with six months of home detention. He was ordered to pay $120,000 in restitution, $67,000 of which had already been recovered.

Testimony showed that Violet Marsh's businesses - Marsh Co., Marsh Investments Inc. and Marsh Development Co. - received more than $1.5 million from more than a dozen investors who said they were told their money would be invested in specified projects or lent to builders and developers at high interest rates.

Instead, witnesses testified that she used the money to shore up her business operations and support a lavish lifestyle.

Evidence showed she did not list the investors as creditors or listed them with incorrect addresses when she filed for bankrupcy protection in 1993, so they never received notice of the filing.

During the bankruptcy proceedings, witnesses said, she concealed assets that included stock, an airplane, two Mercedes Benz cars and an art collection including a Dale Chihuly glass bowl, a Frederic Hart sculpture in Lucite, antique Japanese screens and other works.

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