A federal jury in Texas found Marina Brooks, 70, and Charles Brooks, 74, of Irving guilty on Sept. 28 of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Prosecutors say the couple took at least $9.5 million from more than 700 investors, many of them drawn in by radio ads. The Brookses have been convicted but not sentenced, and no sentencing date has been set.
What the Eastern District of Texas jury decided
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas announced that the jury returned its verdict on Sept. 28, 2026, after a week-long trial before U.S. District Judge Amos L. Mazzant. The single charge was conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The office is led by U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs, and the release names Assistant U.S. Attorneys Peter T. Thomas and Ashlyn Scott as the prosecutors on the case. The FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation handled the investigation.
Conviction is the step before punishment, not the punishment itself. The release lists the sentence as a matter still to come: sentencing is “to be scheduled” after presentence investigations are completed. The maximum for the offense is up to 20 years in federal prison, along with fines and restitution. A maximum is a ceiling, and the judge, not the prosecutors, will set the actual sentence.
The release includes no statement from the defendants or their lawyers, and it does not say whether either plans to challenge the verdict. Until sentencing, the public record on the case is the verdict and the prosecutors’ description of the scheme.
How the Irving investment scheme was pitched
According to the release, the scheme ran for multiple years and targeted Hispanic victims. The couple solicited money through radio advertisements for ventures in entertainment and cryptocurrency. Prosecutors say the promises were extreme: “100% returns,” shares that “would go up and never down,” and cryptocurrencies that “carried no risk.”
The release says investor money did not stay where it was promised. Funds were diverted for personal use and used to recruit more victims, which is how a scheme of this shape keeps running. New money pays for the appearance of success, and the appearance brings in the next round.
The dollar figures make the harm concrete. If the figure of at least $9.5 million were spread over exactly 700 people, that would be roughly $13,600 each ($9,500,000 divided by 700). The release says the count is “over 700” and the total is “at least” $9.5 million, so the real average could land higher or lower. For a household, an amount that size is often a down payment, a retirement rollover or years of savings.
Radio ads and group trust: the pattern investor regulators warn about
Investment schemes aimed at a community rely on trust more than on paperwork. The Securities and Exchange Commission’s investor education site describes this as investment scams targeting groups, where “fraudsters involved in these scams often are – or pretend to be – members of the group.” The site lists red flags that line up with the language in the Brooks case: promises of exceptional profits or guaranteed returns, and claims of investments with minimal or no risk.
Other warning signs on the same page include pressure to invest quickly, requests to keep an opportunity confidential and a lack of written documentation. The SEC’s guidance recommends using its free background-check tool at Investor.gov to see whether a seller is licensed and registered and whether complaints or disciplinary actions exist. The page also warns to “never let down your guard because someone you trust brought an investment opportunity to your attention.”
A “100% return” claim is a specific and testable promise. An investment that doubles money on a schedule, with no risk, is not something licensed advisers offer, and a pitch that leans on a radio voice or a shared background in place of documents is asking for trust it has not earned.
In practice, that guidance comes down to two ordinary steps before money moves: getting the investment’s terms in writing, and looking the seller up. A seller who declines to provide either has answered the question that matters.
What the release does not say about the victims
The Justice Department release does not say how much of the money has been recovered, how restitution would be paid, or how victims should come forward. It also does not say how the couple identified the people they contacted beyond the radio advertising. Readers who think they invested with the Brookses’ companies would need to contact the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Texas or the FBI, which the release names as the investigating agency.
The Justice Department’s national list of U.S. Attorney press releases shows the Eastern District of Texas announcement dated Sept. 28, 2026, the same day as the verdict. Sentencing will be announced separately, and the conviction is subject to whatever post-trial motions and appeals the defendants pursue.
Where scam pitches find their audience
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This article was prepared with AI assistance and checked against the Justice Department release before publication.
