PRETEND

Twelve days. That’s how long David Gentile spent in federal prison for a $1.8 billion fraud that wiped out the retirement savings of 17,000 people.

On Thanksgiving 2025, President Trump signed a one-page clemency grant, commuting Gentile’s seven-year sentence to time served and erasing a $15 million restitution order in the process.

In this episode, we talk to one of those 17,000 victims, CarolAnn Tutera, a 70-year-old still working because she can’t afford not to. We also talk to securities fraud attorney Adam Gana and Ponzi Playbook co-host Neal McTighe about how the scheme worked, what the pardon means, and what it says about the current climate for white collar crime.

CarolAnn Tutera

GPB Capital investor and CEO of Tutera Medical

tuteramedical.com

Adam Gana

Securities fraud attorney, Gana LLP

ganalawfirm.com/adam-gana

Neal McTighe

Co-host, Ponzi Playbook podcast

Ponzi Playbook on Spotify

The Conviction and Sentencing

DOJ Press Release

justice.gov

The Blueprint of the Fraud

SEC Civil Complaint

sec.gov

The White House Response

Forbes Breaking News — search: “Karoline Leavitt Asked About Trump’s Commutation Of Private Equity CEO’s Fraud Sentence”

00:00  CarolAnn’s Story

04:06  David Gentile’s Promise

04:38  I Beg Your Pardon

07:02  How a Ponzi Scheme Works

14:21  The Smoking Gun Emails

15:47  CarolAnn’s $400K

16:42  The Takedown

18:38  The Verdict

19:22  The Pardon

20:06  The White House Response

23:12  Restitution Wiped Out

29:51  The Pay-to-Play Pattern

33:41  The Perfect Storm

GuestsResourcesChapters36:44  Ponzi Playbook Returns
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Jerry Bush was a plumber from Virginia with fourteen employees, a wife battling cancer, and a business his father built from nothing. When a big construction job left him waiting on $350,000 he'd already earned, he did what you'd probably do. He looked for a loan.

The man who picked up the phone was named Jonathan Braun.

Before Braun found Jerry, he was running a half-billion dollar international drug smuggling operation. After he found Jerry, he froze his bank account, drained his father's retirement, took money from his 16-year-old son, and told Jerry his only way out was to win the lottery or die.

And then things got worse.

By the time it was over, Jerry Bush had lost his business, his savings, and nearly his life. Jonathan Braun had a Ferrari, a Lamborghini, a personal butler, and a very powerful friend.

What happens next will make you question everything you think you know about who the justice system is actually designed to protect and who it leaves behind.

I Beg Your Pardon is a new investigative series from PRETEND.
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CONTENT WARNING: Graphic content. Listener discretion is advised.

 

Who’s Afraid of LaDonna Humphrey — Revisited

A lot of people ask: where should I start if I just discovered PRETEND? The answer is always LaDonna.

It’s been almost two years since the first episode of Who’s Afraid of LaDonna Humphrey dropped — and this one is still mind-blowing. Whether you’re a first-time listener or coming back to revisit, this is the place to start.

In this episode, we’re replaying Part One. It’s a hell of an introduction.

🎧 Want the full series? We’ve put together a Spotify playlist with all the episodes and updates, tidied up in one place. Check it out below.

➡️ Listen to the full LaDonna Humphrey playlist on Spotify

 

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2LOnqAGe8D4JQ4bAwjGn9P?si=54f21cbedfb640f8

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I want to share a quick update about the "Hand That Held Me" series.

Due to some recent developments, I’ve made the decision to postpone the release. I know many of you were expecting it, and I’m sorry for the change. These situations can be complex, and I want to make sure I handle the story the right way.

This also leaves an unexpected three-week gap in the schedule while I prepare the next series. I appreciate your patience as I work to queue up what’s coming next.

Thank you, as always, for listening and for trusting the work.

— Javier
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We conclude one of the most disturbing series ever covered on this podcast. Here are parts 3 and 4 of the Pests.

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