Samuel Israel III, a former hedge fund manager convicted of cheating clients out of $300 million, appears to have committed suicide, say police. Samuel Israel previously admitted to considering suicide when his partner was convicted of fraud.
Israel was recently sentenced to 20 years in prison, but failed to show up for his term at a Boston area prison on Monday. Samuel Israel’s car was instead found in New York with the words "Suicide is Painless" scrawled on his car. It was located by the Bear Mountain Bridge over the Hudson River. The bridge stands 156 feet above the water.
Samuel Israel founded the Bayou Hedge Fund Group in 1996, taking $300 million from investors. Later, in 2004, Samuel Israel falsely estimated the value of the fund at $450 million to investors. But the fund never made any money. The SEC began to investigate, and later said that Samuel Israel and CFO Daniel Marino “overstated gains, understated losses, and reported gains where there were losses.”
The company ultimately filed for bankruptcy in 2006, and Samuel Israel was convicted April 14, 2008. He had been caught trying to wire $100 million.