By DEREK HODGES

Staff Writer

KNOXVILLE — The long saga of accused Ponzi schemer Dennis Bolze may come to a close today, at least on the criminal side, as the Gatlinburg man appears in federal court to change his not guilty plea.

Bolze is set to come before U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Varlan at 11 a.m. today in Knoxville in a change of plea hearing. Since his arrest in mid-March in Pennsylvania, Bolze has twice pleaded not guilty to the felony wire fraud and money laundering charges against him.

With the scheduling of the hearing, it appears likely the government and Bolze have struck a deal that will allow him to admit guilt for at least a portion of the charges against him in exchange for a lighter sentence. There have been previous indications the two sides were bargaining, including a reference Bolze himself made to a plea deal document during his last appearance in court a couple months ago.

Though he declined to comment specifically on the Bolze case, Circuit Court Judge Rex Henry Ogle said scheduling that type of hearing is usually a sign a bargain has been negotiated.

“When someone has put in a plea of not guilty and then a change of plea hearing is scheduled, it would appear there is a plea agreement,” Ogle said. “That would usually mean both sides have already agreed to it.”

Generally, a plea agreement includes a suggested sentence that is lighter than the one that would be imposed if the accused is found guilty of all the offenses he or she is accused of, even though the person might actually plead guilty to all those charges. However, Ogle points out there are instances in which the agreement simply is that the person will plead guilty in exchange for a lesser sentence, with what that includes being left up to the judge.

If a proposed sentence is included in the deal, Varlan, in addition to the prosecution and defense, will have to approve the deal. That means the suggested punishment will have to meet minimum standards set by law and Varlan’s own interpretation of how much of a sentence Bolze deserves, Ogle said.

If everyone finds the deal agreeable, Bolze could begin serving any imposed sentence immediately.

Bolze stands accused of swindling somewhere around 160 people both locally and around the world out of more than $20 million, according to the indictment against him. Federal investigators allege he ran a fraudulent investment operation out of his home using the front Las Vegas businesses Centurion Asset Management and Advanced Trading Services.

Based on evidence they uncovered during a months-long investigation of Bolze spurred about the time he disappeared from his Gatlinburg home, they say Bolze was taking money from new investors and using it to make payments to existing ones, to whom he attested annual returns using his stock market-playing system. In the meantime, he was keeping a portion of the money he received to finance a lavish lifestyle that included high-profile parties and fundraisers, as well as a Campbell Lead Road home valued around $10 million.

Though today’s hearing may bring an end to the criminal prosecution against Bolze, battles over his assets in civil and bankruptcy courts will likely proceed for some time.

dhodges@themountainpress.com