Marc Schrenker

Heritage Wealth Management financial manager Marcus Schrenker of Indiana has plead guilty to faking his death by crashing his private plane into a swampy area near Milton, Florida, on January 11, 2009.Associated Press: Ind. money manager guilty in Fla. plane crash Prosecutors say that Schrenker, who entered his plea on June 5, 2009, left suicide notes, stashed a motorcycle as a getaway vehicle and sent a false distress call before parachuting from his plane, hoping it would land in the Gulf of Mexico. The assets of both Schrenker and his wife Michelle were frozen in early February 2009.MSNBC: Schrenker assets to remain frozen (February 5, 2009)

On February 5, 2009, an Alabama judge ordered Schrenker to pay $12 million, the result of a lawsuit stemming from a fraudulent sale of an airplane in 2002.Fox News: Alabama Judge Orders Pilot Accused of Faking Plane Crash to Pay $12M (February 6, 2009)

The missing pilot of a small plane that crashed near Milton, Florida, on Sunday, January 11, 2009, was identified as Marc Schrenker. Schrenker became the subject of an intense search after the crash; he'd radioed in a distress call saying his windshield had imploded and he was severely bleeding before the plane finally went down 200 miles from where the distress call was transmitted.

It was later determined that Schrenker was alive, having been spotted in Childersburg, Alabama. An official with the FAA said the 38-year-old Schrenker parachuted from his plane as it flew over Shelby County, Alabama. Schrenker, who later told Childersburg officials he'd been in a "canoeing accident," was taken by police to a nearby hotel. At the time, authorities were unaware of the plane incident. Schrenker checked into the hotel under an assumed name and soon fled into a nearby woods.FOX News: Pilot of Small Plane in Florida Panhandle Crash Spotted Alive PNJ.com: Missing pilot found alive (January 12, 2009)

On January 13, 2009, the Gadsden County Sheriff's office confirmed that Marc Schrenker had been found in Quincy, Florida, with marks consistent of a suicide attempt, and that he had been taken to Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare.CNN: Charges filed against pilot who may have faked death (January 13, 2009) Schrenker was released from a Tallahassee hospital and taken to the Escambia County Jail in Pensacola, Florida, on January 18, 2009.WRTV Indianapolis: Schrenker Taken From Hospital To Jail (January 19, 2009) Schrenker's public defendant claimed that his client was "mentally incompetent" and unable to stand trial. CNN: Man accused of crashing plane incompetent, lawyer says (January 22, 2009)

A friend and neighbor of Schrenker said he received an email from Schrenker on January 12, 2009. In the email, Schrenker said the crash was an accident. The friend said the note sounded like a suicide note and included quotes such as "By the time you read this, I'll be gone." The authenticity of the email has not been verified.Fox News: Pilot Accused of Faking Distress Call Stored Motorcycle Before He Vanished (January 13, 2009)

Schrenker's business, Heritage Wealth Management, was in the midst of a fraud and embezzlement investigation at the time of the crash. After his disappearance, a judge in Indiana froze his assets.CNN: Judge Freezes Assets of Pilot Whose Plane Crashed Without Him (January 13, 2009) On January 13, 2009, authorities in Hamilton County, Indiana, announced that Schrenker had been charged with unlawful acts by a compensated adviser and unlawful transaction by an investment adviser. Officials believe that Schrenker fraudulently used his clients' investment funds and then staged his death in an attempt to cover up the crime.CNN: Charges filed against pilot who may have faked death (January 13, 2009)

In a separate suit, an Alabama court ordered Schrenker to pay $12 million for a fraudulent sale. The suit alleged that Schrenker sold a plane to Alabama businessman Barnett Hudson, claiming it was intact. Hudson later found out that the plane had been involved in a hard landing; Schrenker had accepted an insurance payment for the damage but only made cosmetic changes. Hudson sued; and the judge awarded $3 million in compensatory damages and $9 million in punitive damages.Fox News: Alabama Judge Orders Pilot Accused of Faking Plane Crash to Pay $12M (February 6, 2009)