SEC v. Matthew M. Motil, No. LR-26462, Northern District of Ohio (Jan. 16, 2026) — Press Release
raw: Matthew M. Motil, et al.
Matthew M. Motil, et al., No. LR-26462 (Jan. 16, 2026)
summary
Matthew Motil obtained a final consent judgment for a Ponzi scheme involving fraudulent promissory notes, resulting in a 70-month prison sentence and millions in restitution.
paragraph
Matthew Motil defrauded investors of millions through a scheme involving promissory notes falsely claimed to be collateralized by Ohio real estate. He was charged with violating federal registration and anti-fraud provisions, including Section 17(a) of the Securities Act and Rule 10b-5. Motil was ordered to pay $2,967,535 in disgorgement and interest, alongside a $5,040,862 criminal restitution order.
narrative
Matthew Motil, a podcast host, orchestrated a fraud by offering promissory notes that were purportedly collateralized by first mortgages on Ohio homes. In reality, the notes were not fully secured, and Motil used investor funds for personal expenses and Ponzi payments to prior investors. The SEC obtained a final consent judgment against him for violating various anti-fraud and registration provisions. Motil was ordered to pay $2,967,535 in disgorgement plus $340,396 in interest, which is satisfied by his parallel criminal restitution order. In a separate criminal case, Motil was sentenced to 70 months in prison and ordered to pay $5,040,862 in restitution. Additionally, he is permanently enjoined from participating in most securities offerings and transactions.
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Statutes
Parties
Securities and Exchange CommissionMatthew M. Motil
Keywords
motilmatthew motilsecuritiessecurities exchangeohiomatthewexchangejanuary securitiesexchange commissionfinal consentnorthern ohiopromissory notesfully collateralizedcollateralized mortgagespermanently enjoining
Exhibits & Attached Documents (1)
Extracted insights
Dollar amounts 3
- $5.04M $5,040,862 $1M–$10M
- $2.97M $2,967,535 $1M–$10M
- $340K $340,396 $100K–$1M
Entities 7
- person james carlson
- person jeff leasure
- person john timmer
- person matthew motil
- agency sec's investigation
- agency sec's litigation
- agency Securities and Exchange Commission
Triples 13
- Securities And Exchange Commission obtained final consent judgment against Matthew Motil
- Securities And Exchange Commission alleged Matthew Motil defrauded investors of millions of dollars with promises of low-risk, high return promissory notes purportedly fully collateralized by first mortgages on homes located throughout Ohio
- Matthew Motil used investor money to make Ponzi payments to prior investors and to pay personal expenses
- Matthew Motil consented to permanent injunction from violating Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 17(a) of the Securities Act and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5
- Matthew Motil consented to permanent injunction from participating in issuance, purchase, offer, or sale of any security outside of certain personal transactions
- Matthew Motil ordered to pay disgorgement of $2,967,535 plus prejudgment interest of $340,396
- Criminal Court sentenced Matthew Motil to 70 months in prison
- Criminal Court ordered Matthew Motil to pay restitution of $5,040,862
- United States Of America filed criminal case against Matthew M. Motil, No. 24-cr-289 (N.D. Ohio)
- Securities And Exchange Commission investigated Matthew Motil's fraudulent securities offerings
- Jeff Leasure supervised SEC's investigation
- John Timmer led SEC's litigation
- James Carlson supervised SEC's litigation
PDF (from attached: complaint)
Text layers
Extracted body text (2,172c)
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSIONLitigation Release No. 26462 / January 16, 2026Securities and Exchange Commission v. Matthew M. Motil et al., No. 23-cv-1853 (N.D. Ohio filed Sept. 25, 2023)SEC Obtains Final Consent Judgment as to Podcast Host Charged with Offering FraudOn January 13, 2026, the Securities and Exchange Commission obtained a final consent judgment in the SEC’s enforcement action against defendant Matthew Motil.The SEC's complaint, filed on September 25, 2023 in federal district court in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, alleged that Motil defrauded investors of millions of dollars with promises of low-risk, high return promissory notes purportedly fully collateralized by first mortgages on homes located throughout Ohio. According to the complaint, the promissory notes were not, in fact, fully collateralized by first mortgages, and Motil used investor money to make Ponzi payments to prior investors and to pay personal expenses.Motil consented to entry of a final judgment permanently enjoining him from violating the registration requirements of Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933, as well as the anti-fraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder; permanently enjoining him from participating in the issuance, purchase, offer, or sale of any security outside of certain transactions for his personal account; and ordering him to pay disgorgement of $2,967,535, plus prejudgment interest thereon of $340,396, which shall be deemed satisfied by the restitution order entered against Motil in the parallel criminal case, United States v. Matthew M. Motil, No. 24-cr-289 (N.D. Ohio filed Aug. 12, 2024). On July 18, 2025, the criminal court sentenced Motil to 70 months in prison and ordered him to pay restitution of $5,040,862.The SEC's investigation was supervised by Jeff Leasure, and the SEC's litigation was led by John Timmer under the supervision of James Carlson. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio, and the State of Ohio Division of Securities.
OCR text (2,172c · html-text · 99% conf)
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSIONLitigation Release No. 26462 / January 16, 2026Securities and Exchange Commission v. Matthew M. Motil et al., No. 23-cv-1853 (N.D. Ohio filed Sept. 25, 2023)SEC Obtains Final Consent Judgment as to Podcast Host Charged with Offering FraudOn January 13, 2026, the Securities and Exchange Commission obtained a final consent judgment in the SEC’s enforcement action against defendant Matthew Motil.The SEC's complaint, filed on September 25, 2023 in federal district court in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, alleged that Motil defrauded investors of millions of dollars with promises of low-risk, high return promissory notes purportedly fully collateralized by first mortgages on homes located throughout Ohio. According to the complaint, the promissory notes were not, in fact, fully collateralized by first mortgages, and Motil used investor money to make Ponzi payments to prior investors and to pay personal expenses.Motil consented to entry of a final judgment permanently enjoining him from violating the registration requirements of Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933, as well as the anti-fraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder; permanently enjoining him from participating in the issuance, purchase, offer, or sale of any security outside of certain transactions for his personal account; and ordering him to pay disgorgement of $2,967,535, plus prejudgment interest thereon of $340,396, which shall be deemed satisfied by the restitution order entered against Motil in the parallel criminal case, United States v. Matthew M. Motil, No. 24-cr-289 (N.D. Ohio filed Aug. 12, 2024). On July 18, 2025, the criminal court sentenced Motil to 70 months in prison and ordered him to pay restitution of $5,040,862.The SEC's investigation was supervised by Jeff Leasure, and the SEC's litigation was led by John Timmer under the supervision of James Carlson. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio, and the State of Ohio Division of Securities.