A man from Murphy, Texas has been sentenced to more than 12 years in federal prison for defrauding investors of over $4 million through oil and gas joint ventures. Sameer Praveen Sethi, 42, was found guilty on seven counts of wire fraud and one count of money laundering following a trial before U.S. District Judge Sean D. Jordan in December 2024. On August 28, 2025, Judge Jordan sentenced Sethi to 151 months in prison.
Court documents showed that Sethi created joint ventures and prepared investment materials with his staff. He then had sales teams market these investments to potential investors. Evidence at trial indicated that the funds raised were spent almost entirely on personal and business expenses rather than on the intended projects. The investment documents given to investors contained false statements and misrepresentations, and most investors received little or no returns despite contributing over $4 million.
“The sentence handed down by Judge Jordan follows years of investigation by Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and a lengthy trial, and shows the serious nature of Sameer Sethi’s crimes,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Jay R. Combs. “The U.S. Attorney’s Office will continue to work closely with the IRS-Criminal Investigation office and the FBI to investigate and prosecute the kinds of investor fraud that occurred in this case and to seek justice for the public and for the innocent victims of these crimes.”
The investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, Texas State Securities Board, and the FBI.
