TerryMoses: copyedit: set DEFAULTSORT sort key

2026-06-03T14:25:21Z

copyedit: set DEFAULTSORT sort key

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:25, 3 June 2026
Line 69:		Line 69:
	<references />		<references />

			{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Dakota}}
	[[Category:High-Profile_Federal_Offenders]]		[[Category:High-Profile_Federal_Offenders]]
	[[Category:Ponzi_Schemes]]		[[Category:Ponzi_Schemes]]

Orderly: Create article: Dakota Smith (federal case)

2026-06-03T14:25:18Z

Create article: Dakota Smith (federal case)

New page

{{Infobox Person
|name = Dakota A. Smith
|residence = Miami, Florida
|charges = Conspiracy to commit wire fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1349)
|conviction_date = November 18, 2025 (guilty plea)
|sentence = 188 months federal prison, 3 years supervised release
|sentencing_date = May 8, 2026
|judge = Hon. Sheryl H. Lipman, Chief U.S. District Judge
|court = U.S. District Court, Western District of Tennessee
|facility = Federal Bureau of Prisons
|status = Incarcerated
|occupation = Investment promoter
|known_for = Peoples Equity Group Ponzi scheme
}}

'''Dakota A. Smith''' is an American former investment promoter from Miami, Florida. He ran a fraud scheme through a company called Peoples Equity Group, often shortened to PEG. The scheme took in more than $27 million from investors and caused losses exceeding $20 million.<ref name="doj-sentence">U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Tennessee. "Florida Man Sentenced to Over 15 Years in Prison for His Role in Ponzi Scheme, Losses Exceed $20 Million." May 2026.</ref><ref name="doj-plea">U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Tennessee. "Florida Man Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Investors in Ponzi Scheme that Took in Over $27 Million." November 2025.</ref>

PEG operated out of Miami from 2021 to 2024. Smith told investors the company owned small, profitable businesses in e-commerce and aviation. He offered ownership stakes in those businesses. Neither PEG nor its affiliated entities held any ownership or control over the companies Smith marketed. On monthly video calls, Smith showed investors financial documents that purported to demonstrate the success of the acquired companies. The documents were fabricated.<ref name="doj-sentence" /><ref name="doj-plea" />

Smith pleaded guilty on November 18, 2025, to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud.<ref name="doj-plea" /> On May 8, 2026, Chief U.S. District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman sentenced him to 188 months in federal prison, about 15.6 years, followed by three years of supervised release. The case was prosecuted in the Western District of Tennessee.<ref name="doj-sentence" /> A co-defendant, Simon G. Outhwaite Jr. of Miami, pleaded guilty to the same charge in May 2026.<ref name="doj-second">U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Tennessee. "Second Man Pleads Guilty for Role in Ponzi Scheme that took in Over $27 Million in Investments." 2026.</ref>

== Background ==

Smith was a resident of Miami, Florida.<ref name="doj-plea" /> He worked as an investment promoter and was the public face of Peoples Equity Group, an investment firm he ran with a partner. He marketed the firm to investors across the United States and abroad, including in West Tennessee, which placed the case under the jurisdiction of the Western District of Tennessee.<ref name="doj-sentence" /><ref name="doj-second" />

Public details about Smith's life before PEG are limited in the court record. The government's filings focus on the conduct of the scheme rather than his earlier history. The Federal Bureau of Investigation opened a victim-information portal tied to the case, an indication that investors were spread across a wide geographic area.<ref name="fbi-victims">Federal Bureau of Investigation. "Seeking Victim Information in Dakota Smith Investigation." forms.fbi.gov.</ref>

== The Ponzi Scheme ==

Peoples Equity Group operated from 2021 through 2024.<ref name="doj-plea" /> Smith pitched the company as a holding firm that owned a portfolio of small but profitable operating businesses. The pitch centered on two sectors. The first was e-commerce. The second was aviation. Smith told investors that buying into PEG would give them ownership interests in those underlying companies.<ref name="doj-sentence" />

The companies were not owned by PEG. The Justice Department stated that neither PEG nor its affiliated entities had any ownership stake in or control over the businesses Smith described. The firm marketed several named entities to investors. These included Peoples Equity Group, United Ventures, Skyhigh Technologies Inc., SurroundScape, EasyBloom, EasyWhite, DoNotAge, the Oaktide Aviation Fund, and United Publishing Holdings.<ref name="doj-second" />

Smith reinforced the pitch with fabricated paperwork. He held monthly video calls with investors. On those calls he presented fraudulent financial documents that purported to show how well the acquired companies were performing. The numbers were not real.<ref name="doj-sentence" />

The structure followed the classic Ponzi pattern. Money raised from new investors was the source of the operation rather than any genuine business profit. The scheme took in more than $27 million in total investments. Investor losses exceeded $20 million.<ref name="doj-sentence" /><ref name="doj-plea" /> Investors were located across the United States and overseas.<ref name="doj-second" />

== Charges and Conviction ==

Smith was charged in the Western District of Tennessee with conspiracy to commit wire fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1349. The charge carried a statutory maximum of 20 years in federal prison.<ref name="doj-plea" />

He pleaded guilty on November 18, 2025, before U.S. District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman. He admitted to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and acknowledged that he and his co-conspirator knew PEG did not own or control the companies they marketed.<ref name="doj-plea" />

His co-defendant was Simon G. Outhwaite Jr. of Miami. Outhwaite pleaded guilty to the same charge in May 2026, admitting that he conspired with Smith to defraud investors. Outhwaite was the second of the two men to enter a plea.<ref name="doj-second" />

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. D. Michael Dunavant, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee, announced the charges and the outcome.<ref name="doj-sentence" /><ref name="fbi-victims" />

== Sentencing ==

Chief U.S. District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman sentenced Smith on May 8, 2026. The sentence was 188 months in the custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons. That term is about 15.6 years. The court added three years of supervised release to follow the prison term.<ref name="doj-sentence" />

The 188-month sentence sat near the top of the 20-year statutory maximum for the single conspiracy count. The size of the investor losses, more than $20 million, was a driving factor under the federal sentencing guidelines, which tie fraud offense levels closely to the dollar amount of loss.<ref name="doj-sentence" />

Outhwaite's sentencing was set to follow his May 2026 plea.<ref name="doj-second" />

== Frequently Asked Questions ==
{{FAQSection/Start}}
{{FAQ|question=What did Dakota Smith do?|answer=Dakota A. Smith ran a Ponzi scheme through Peoples Equity Group, a Miami investment firm he operated from 2021 to 2024. He told investors the firm owned profitable e-commerce and aviation companies and offered them ownership stakes. The firm owned none of those companies. He backed the pitch with fabricated financial documents shown on monthly video calls. The scheme took in over $27 million and caused losses exceeding $20 million.}}
{{FAQ|question=How long is Dakota Smith's sentence?|answer=On May 8, 2026, Chief U.S. District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman sentenced Smith to 188 months in federal prison, about 15.6 years, followed by three years of supervised release.}}
{{FAQ|question=What was Dakota Smith charged with?|answer=Smith was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud under 18 U.S.C. § 1349. He pleaded guilty to that count on November 18, 2025.}}
{{FAQ|question=What was Peoples Equity Group?|answer=Peoples Equity Group, or PEG, was a Miami-based investment company Smith operated from 2021 to 2024. He marketed it as a firm that owned profitable e-commerce and aviation businesses. Court filings established that PEG did not own or control the companies it advertised.}}
{{FAQ|question=Who was Dakota Smith's co-defendant?|answer=Simon G. Outhwaite Jr. of Miami was Smith's co-conspirator. Outhwaite pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in May 2026, admitting he conspired with Smith to defraud investors.}}
{{FAQ|question=Where was Dakota Smith prosecuted?|answer=The case was prosecuted in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee. Investors located in West Tennessee gave the district jurisdiction. The FBI investigated, and U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant announced the case.}}
{{FAQ|question=How much money was involved?|answer=The scheme took in more than $27 million in total investments. Investor losses exceeded $20 million.}}
{{FAQSection/End}}

== References ==

<references />

[[Category:High-Profile_Federal_Offenders]]
[[Category:Ponzi_Schemes]]
[[Category:Wire_Fraud]]
[[Category:Currently Incarcerated]]

{{#seo:
|title=Dakota Smith — Peoples Equity Group Ponzi Scheme, 188-Month Federal Sentence | Prisonpedia
|title_mode=replace
|description=Dakota A. Smith of Miami ran the Peoples Equity Group Ponzi scheme, took in over $27 million, and was sentenced in May 2026 to 188 months in federal prison in the Western District of Tennessee.
|keywords=Dakota Smith, Peoples Equity Group, PEG Ponzi scheme, Dakota Smith fraud, Dakota Smith sentence, Simon Outhwaite, Western District of Tennessee wire fraud, Miami investment fraud
|type=ProfilePage
|site_name=Prisonpedia
|locale=en_US
|published_time=2026-06-03
|modified_time=2026-06-03
}}

{{MetaDescription|Dakota A. Smith of Miami ran the Peoples Equity Group Ponzi scheme that took in over $27 million. He was sentenced in May 2026 to 188 months in federal prison in the Western District of Tennessee.}}

Dakota Smith - Revision history

TerryMoses: copyedit: set DEFAULTSORT sort key

Orderly: Create article: Dakota Smith (federal case)