The sentence
Greg Lindberg, founder and chairman of Durham-based Eli Global LLC, was sentenced Tuesday to 12 years in federal prison for his role in a $2 billion fraud conspiracy. The U.S. Department of Justice said the scheme bankrupted multiple insurance companies and left thousands of policyholders unpaid.
Two overlapping crimes
The fraud ran from at least 2016 to 2019. Lindberg and others deceived the North Carolina Department of Insurance and other regulators, concealed the true financial condition of his insurance operations, and redirected policyholder funds to his own benefit. He forgave more than $125 million in loans he had taken from controlled firms, routing proceeds through entities in North Carolina, Bermuda, Malta, and elsewhere. The DOJ said he spent that money on mansions, private jets, and a 200-foot yacht.
Running parallel to that financial scheme, from April 2017 to August 2018, Lindberg and others bribed the NC insurance commissioner. They gave millions of dollars in campaign contributions in exchange for removing the NCDOI senior deputy commissioner who oversaw regulation and examination of Global Bankers Insurance Group. A federal jury convicted Lindberg in May 2024 on conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud and bribery charges. He pleaded guilty in November 2024 to conspiracy to commit offenses against the United States and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The FBI's Charlotte Field Office investigated both cases.
What victims face now
Victims are still collectively owed over $1 billion. The court has appointed a special master in the fraud case to work through the repayment process.