Posted on: October 29, 2024, 07:23h.
Last updated on: October 29, 2024, 07:23h.
A coin, jewelry, and precious metals dealer from Bay City, Mich. is accused of bilking his customers out of hundreds of thousands of dollars and gambling on their dime.
Matthew Joseph Burton, 52, was charged Monday with several counts of felony false pretenses related to his failure to honor purchase agreements with customers at his two businesses, Flying Eagle Coins in Bay City and Jack of All Trades in Mt. Pleasant.
On numerous occasions, Burton accepted money up front from customers in exchange for precious metals but failed to stump up the goods. At the same time, he gambled upwards of $5 million at the Soaring Eagle Casino in Mt. Pleasant, according to court records.
Shortchange
Michigan state police began looking into Burton in January 2023 after he allegedly took $127K from a customer in exchange for precious metals. He then left the state for over a year without fulfilling his end of the bargain, prosecutors claim.
That same month, Bay County Sherrif’s Office launched an investigation after receiving a complaint from a 72-year-old man who had paid Burton $20K for gold and silver. The man received $9,665 in gold and silver and a promise that the remaining balance would be paid in silver.
Months passed, and despite his numerous efforts to contact Burton, the victim did not receive his silver, prosecutors claimed.
There is always an excuse,” the man told police, according to court filings. “He was saying they were closed because he had COVID or something … On Facebook, Matt is posting pictures in a suite at the Lions game, so he’s living large on my dime.”
When investigators learned that Burton was a regular visitor to the Soaring Eagle, they obtained the history of his Player’s Club reward card, and it made for interesting reading.
Prolific Gambler
It showed he’d plowed $5,188,046.04 into slot machines, cashing out $4,235,304.96 for a loss of almost $1 million. On the day he received the $20K from the 72-year-old victim he poured $33K into the machines.
He visited the casino every day but two in October 2023, with daily slot contributions ranging from $5K to $100K, according to police reports.
A look into Matthew Burton’s Soaring Eagle Casino Player’s Card suggests that Matthew is using the money from the pawn shop gold sales to gamble with,” authorities concluded.
Several other customers claim they are owed sums ranging from $1.4K to $60K by Burton, who gave them checks that bounced, according to court records.
The defendant is scheduled to appear for preliminary hearings in Isabella and Bay counties’ district courts on Nov. 8 and Nov. 22, respectively. The most serious charge of false pretenses of $100,000 or more comes with a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
