Adair County Man Indicted On Fraud Charge Relating To Oil And Gas Investment Scheme

LEXINGTON, Ky. – A federal grand jury in Lexington has indicted an Adair County man, on a charge of conspiracy to commit mail fraud, wire fraud and securities fraud, arising out of an oil and gas exploration investment scheme.  As alleged in the indictment, from 2007 until 2017, Ronnie C. Rodgers, 62, of Columbia, Ky., solicited investors in oil and gas production programs involving oil and gas leases, in South Central Kentucky and Tennessee.  He solicited these investors under various business names, including Rick-Rod Oil Company, Inc.; Big South Resources; Big South Energy; Hydro & Green Global Energy, LLC; and R&R Plus, LLC. 

The indictment alleges a scheme in which Rodgers and his associates profited from misappropriating investor money, rather than from the sale of oil and gas.  Rogers is alleged to have obtained money from the investors by making false representations and by failing to advise them of facts, which were material to their investments.  These misrepresentations included predictions about the amount of expected oil production, statements about when the investors could expect a return of their investment, claims that oil was already being produced, and other similar misrepresentations.   According to the indictment, Rodgers also failed to disclose that he was a convicted felon; that he had been enjoined by state authorities from selling oil and gas investments; and that he had mostly drilled dry wells. 

Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky; Chris White, Assistant Inspector in Charge, U.S. Postal Inspection Service; and Charles A. Vice, Commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Financial Institutions, jointly announced the indictment.  The indictment results from a joint investigation by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Kentucky Department of Financial Institutions.  

            An indictment is an accusation only. A defendant is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial, at which the government must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.