Texas businessman sentenced to 13 years in federal prison as DOJ seizes Lamborghinis, Ferraris and dozens more cars bought with fraud proceeds
Key Takeaways
- •Clayton Lloyd Iley, a 41-year-old businessman from Stephenville, Texas, was sentenced to 160 months in federal prison after pleading guilty in June to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.
- •Prosecutors said Iley collected more than $2 million from victims through a fake 'Bonded Note' loan program purportedly offered by the Defense Department, which he promoted via his firm Spartan Global Security, doing business as Black Eagle PMC.
- •Iley also accepted insurance clients' premium payments without opening policies and used victims' personal information to obtain credit cards in their names without their knowledge, routing charges through his company's accounts.
- •As part of his plea agreement, Iley agreed to forfeit more than 90 exotic and collector vehicles bought with scheme proceeds, with investigators having seized 22 of them as of July.
- •The seized vehicles, including Lamborghinis, Ferraris, and Maseratis Fortune estimates are worth between $1.8 million and $3.1 million, will be sold with proceeds directed toward restitution for victims.

Nicolas Cage's 2000 cult classic Gone in 60 Seconds took a minute. Clayton Lloyd Iley will be gone considerably longer.
Iley, a 41-year-old businessman from Stephenville, Texas, has been sentenced to 160 months—more than 13 years federal prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas. Prosecutors say he financed more than 90 exotic and collector vehicles with proceeds from his scheme.
Iley ran an insurance brokerage out of Cross Plains, Texas. From January 2020 through May 2026, prosecutors say he also moved money through two companies he controlled, including Spartan Global Security, which did business as "Black Eagle PMC" and offered private military contracting services, a sector that provides security and defense services under contract.
He told victims he could invest their money in a "Bonded Note" loan program that the Defense Department supposedly offered to private military contractors. The program didn't exist; instead, prosecutors say, he collected more than $2 million and spent it on personal expenses and other parts of the scheme.
The fraud also touched his insurance clients. Iley took their premium payments and never opened their policies. Prosec say he then handed victims' personal information to banks to obtain credit cards in their names without their knowledge, running the charges through Spartan Global's accounts as business receipts and using the cards to pay personal bills and make payments toward the cars. That kind of identity theft can leave victims disputing unauthorized accounts with banks and credit bureaus long after the case itself is over.
"Clayton Iley's conduct caused real financial and emotional harm to the victims he targeted, many of whom trusted him with their personal information and hard-earned money," said U.S. Attorney Ryan Raybould. "This sentence reflects our commitment to holding fraudsters accountable. Those who steal from members of our community, manipulate them with fabricated schemes and misuse their identities will face significant federal consequences."
Iley pleaded guilty in June, and a U.S. district judge imposed the 160-month sentence on Oct. 1. Under federal law, wire fraud carries a maximum of 20 years per count, and aggravated identity theft requires a mandatory two-year term served consecutively to any other sentence. A lawyer for Iley could not be reached for comment.
The muscle car collection
As part of his plea agreement, Iley agreed to forfeit more than 90 exotic and collector vehicles bought with money from the scheme. As of July, investigators had seized 22 of them, according to DOJ's announcement.
The collection reads like a car show. Investigators seized at least seven Lamborghinis, Ferraris and Maseratis—including a 2012 Aventador, a 2015 Huracán, two Ferrari 488s and three Maserati MC20s, which Fortune estimates are worth $1.3 million to $2.1 million combined based on current listings.
The list also includes two Dodge Vipers, a Porsche Taycan, a Mercedes-AMG coupe, a Jeep Gladiator and a Ram pickup, plus a throwback garage: a 1968 Firebird, a 1979 Trans Am, three Camaros and a 1973 Plymouth. A Humvee and two military trucks round it out.
Fortune estimates the roughly two dozen vehicles the DOJ has named are worth between $1.8 million and $3.1 million. The DOJ has not released official values, and most of the 90-plus cars have not been publicly identified.
Authorities will sell the vehicles, using the proceeds to pay restitution to victims. How much those sales ultimately raise for victims remains an open question.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com.