FBI Poster for Justin Costello
FBI
The former fugitive accused of posing as a billionaire, a Harvard MBA and an Iraq War vet to scam people out of $35 million was ordered detained without bail pending trial in large part because he is “an economic danger to the community,” a federal judge said in a court filing.
Justin Costello is also “a serious flight risk,” wrote U.S. Magistrate Judge Daniel Butcher, who added in Monday’s filing that no conditions would “reasonably assure” that the 42-year-old would show up in court again if freed on bond.
Butcher noted that Costello faces a recommended prison term of between 27 years and nearly 34 years under federal sentencing guidelines if convicted of the multiple counts of securities and wire fraud he is charged with in a criminal indictment issued in federal court in Washington state.
“The weight of the evidence is strong,” Butcher wrote in his detention order in U.S. District Court in San Diego.
“The allegations in the indictment are extensive and detailed,” he wrote.
Source: FBI
Butcher wrote that the evidence itself is the least important factor in his decision to keep Costello in jail.
But, he added, “when taken together with the significant [prison] sentence Defendant faces if convicted, the Court finds Defendant has a serious incentive to flee.”
Costello’s lawyer, Cindy Muro, did not respond to messages seeking comment.
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