A 56-year-old Waimanalo man was arrested Monday on wire fraud charges for allegedly bilking Hawaii families, small-business groups and individuals out of $638,000 by promoting concerts and other events that never occurred.
Turk Cazimero, who solicited investors from September 2013 to September 2015 under his business, Hawaiian Hurricane Productions, was indicted on three counts of wire fraud by a federal grand jury Wednesday. He made his initial appearance in court Monday afternoon.
If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison per count, an FBI news release said.
The indictment alleges that Cazimero schemed to defraud people by soliciting money and falsely claiming he was promoting events, including a rodeo in Waimanalo, a national musical festival sponsored by sports apparel company Vans, and concerts to be performed by various national recording artists.
He told investors the money would be used to pay for expenses related to the concerts and events, but Cazimero was using the money for his personal purposes, the indictment said.
FBI Special Agent Tom Simon said the FBI and the state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs’ Securities Enforcement Branch jointly investigated the case.
Cazimero’s son and nephew were in the courtroom supporting him, Simon said outside the courthouse. Cazimero was released on his own recognizance but was asked to surrender his passport, he said.
The six entities include “families who pooled their money together … nice, salt-of-the-earth, local families,” said Simon. “They aren’t people who could afford to lose this much money,” along with small businesses, which also pooled their money together, and individuals.
Cazimero’s claim to fame was as a disco dancer in the 1970s, dubbed the Hawaiian Hurricane. He is also a nephew of well-known musical duo the Brothers Cazimero.
The indictment alleges Cazimero showed prospective investors event fliers, websites, advertisements and a YouTube video that made it appear as if a country music concert and rodeo had been booked. Also, corporations cited in promotional materials were not actual event sponsors.
Cazimero defrauded “multiple Hawaii families by seeking investments in several nonexistent concerts and special events he claimed to be promoting in exchange for investment returns, event sponsorships and profit-sharing.”
He is accused of using the money for his personal purposes and to repay individuals who had previously invested in concerts and events that never happened.
On Feb. 11, 2003, Cazimero was convicted of securities fraud, a Class B felony, and fraudulent and other prohibited practices, in Oahu Circuit Court. He was sentenced to 350 hours of community service, six months’ confinement, five years’ probation and ordered to pay $192,657 in restitution.
