A Columbia Falls woman has been charged with six felonies for allegedly running a Ponzi scheme worth more than $1.5 million.

Catherine Finberg was charged Aug. 31 in Flathead District Court with felony theft by embezzlement, failure to register as a securities broker, failure to register securities, operating a Ponzi scheme and two counts of fraudulent securities practices.

According to court documents, Finberg took investments from 28 people between 2008 and 2016.

Finberg allegedly collected more than $1.2 million, but lost 83 percent of the money. In addition, approximately $300,000 allegedly was mismanaged for a disabled person.

She was not properly registered as an securities broker-dealer, the state claims, and investors never received tax documents or proper paperwork for the transactions. Finberg allegedly told the investors that she was taking care of their taxes.

At least three of the investors are classified as “vulnerable” under state statute because they are over 60 years old, including two people who are over 80.

“Defendant falsely told [an elderly woman] that she made a profit on the money they gave her,” Special Assistant Montana Attorney General Jesse Laslovich wrote in court documents. “She also falsely told [the elderly woman] that she paid them one-third of the profit, kept one-third of the profit as her fee and paid one-third of the profit as taxes owed on the profit.”

The woman and her husband allegedly gave Finberg more than $270,000 from October 2009 to April 2016 and are currently owed $175,000.

Another 75-year-old investor allegedly gave Finberg $120,000 to invest from December 2011 to March 2016. She is currently owed $120,000.

Finberg allegedly used invested money to pay other investors and the current balance owed to 18 investors is more than $1 million.

Court documents also claim that instead of managing an account for the benefit of a disabled man as she was legally entrusted to do, Finberg made withdrawals to pay her own bills.

Finberg allegedly received only $11,000 in wages from 2008 until 2016 from Columbia Falls school district, where she is an assistant basketball coach.

Despite this, Laslovich claims in court documents that Finberg’s monthly expenditures averaged $3,805 to investors, $1,905 to a credit card, $500 to another credit card and $1,730 for her mortgage. The state also alleges that Finberg went on a cruise in April.

On April 15, state prosecutors filed a motion to freeze Finberg’s accounts as the Montana State Auditor’s Office and Federal Bureau of Investigation looked into the matter. The accounts were frozen, though some money was released for Finberg’s legal defense.

An arraignment date has not been set.

Flathead District Judge Amy Eddy signed an order on Wednesday for Finberg to turn herself in so that she could be booked and released. If Finberg does not do so, a warrant will be issued for her arrest.

Reporter Megan Strickland may be reached at 758-4459 or by email at [email protected].