Ninth Circuit Upholds Convictions Of Aequitas Executives In Multi

Appellate Court Rejects Defendants’ Arguments, Including Claims That Disclosures in Legal Documents Cured Misrepresentations to Investors.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed Friday the convictions of three former executives of the failed investment company Aequitas Management LLC. The decision, handed down on September 5, 2025, upholds the guilty verdicts for wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud against Robert J. Jesenik, Andrew N. MacRitchie, and Brian K. Rice.

The case, which captivated the financial community in the Pacific Northwest, stemmed from the collapse of Aequitas in 2016. Prosecutors successfully argued that Jesenik, the company’s CEO, MacRitchie, its Chief Compliance Officer, and Rice, an Executive Vice President, engaged in a scheme