Ex-CEO of Sunwest Management, assisted living business, ordered to pay $74 million to 1,400 fraud victims
PORTLAND, Ore. (KTVZ) — The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon announced Friday that the former CEO of Sunwest Management and associated companies, who previously admitted to orchestrating one of the largest financial fraud schemes in Oregon history, was ordered to pay over $74 million in restitution to more than 1,400 victims.
Jon Michael Harder, 58, a resident of Canyonville, Oregon, who pleaded guilty in 2015 to one count of wire fraud and one count of money laundering, was ordered to pay $74,062,211 in restitution to his victims.
According to court documents, Harder formerly controlled a network of companies that bought, constructed and managed assisted living facilities. At its height, the organization, Sunwest Management and its related companies, owned approximately 300 assisted living facilities that served more than 15,000 residents.
As CEO of Sunwest, prosecutors say Harder knowingly and intentionally misled hundreds of investors about the nature and risks of their investment in Sunwest housing facilities and development projects. They said he further misled his investors about the financial health of Sunwest, failing to disclose that the company continuously operated at substantial monthly losses. In total, Harder misled more than 1,400 investors, causing losses exceeding $120 million.
On September 18, 2012, a federal grand jury in Portland returned a 56-count indictment charging Harder with mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering. On January 8, 2015, Harder pleaded guilty to one count each of wire fraud and money laundering. On November 18, 2015, Harder was sentenced to 180 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release.
On January 13, 2021, after Harder had served just over five years of his 15-year prison sentence, President Donald J. Trump commuted his sentence to time-served.
This case was investigated by IRS-Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, FBI, and the Justice Department’s U.S. Trustee Program. Restitution was litigated by Claire M. Fay, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
