Former Private Equity CEO Sentenced to 33 Months for $63 Million Wire Fraud Scheme

October 15, 2026

Santarelli, 57, of Laguna Niguel, was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison after pleading guilty in October 2025 to one count of wire fraud. From June 2020 to June 2024 he raised about $63 million from more than 400 investors nationwide by selling unsecured promissory notes through his firm, Norada Capital Management. He marketed monthly interest payments at a “high-yield” rate of about 12% to 17%, said to come from diversified business investments but instead operated an unprofitable fund, hid more than $90 million in debt, inflated assets, and used new investors’ money to pay earlier ones.

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