CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – Former podcaster and licensed real estate agent Matthew Motil, 45, of North Olmsted, has been sentenced to 70 months in federal prison for orchestrating a Ponzi scheme that defrauded at least 63 victims out of over $7.3 million nationwide.
According to the Department of Justice, Motil ran the scheme between October 2017 and March 2022 through multiple companies he owned. Branding himself as the “Cash Flow King,” Motil used his podcast, social media, and a book titled Man on Fire to build investor trust.
Motil solicited investments by issuing promissory notes claiming they were secured by mortgages on Northeast Ohio properties. However, he repeatedly used the same properties as collateral for multiple investors, deceiving each into believing they were the sole mortgage holders.
He avoided investors’ questions about mortgages by citing long processing times, then used new investor funds to pay earlier investors—classic Ponzi tactics. Additionally, Motil used the stolen money to support his lifestyle, including leasing a home on Lake Erie, buying courtside tickets to Cleveland Cavaliers games, and funding his fitness businesses.
Motil pleaded guilty to securities fraud and wire fraud in September 2024. On July 18, 2025, U.S. District Court Judge Donald C. Nugent sentenced him to 70 months in prison, three years of supervised release, and ordered him to pay over $5 million in restitution.
