Shakopee Horse Racer Gets Prison In Federal Ponzi Scheme Conviction

MINNEAPOLIS — A 59-year-old horse racer from Shakopee was sentenced to more than four years in prison and ordered to pay $3.1 million in restitution after operating a fraudulent investment scheme, U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger announced Friday.

Jason Dodd Bullard pleaded guilty on April 25 to one count of wire fraud. His sentence of 51 months in prison was handed down Thursday in federal court.

Bullard ran Empire Racing Stables — which ran several successful horses at Canterbury Park —until the operation was shut down by federal authorities in 2021.

From 2014 through 2021, Bullard and others working under him solicited funds from individuals, entities, and trusts purportedly to invest in a foreign currency investment program, according to investigators.

However, Bullard was actually operating a Ponzi scheme, investigators said.

Instead of legitimate investing, Bullard used the funds he collected to support his family's lifestyle and fund four unrelated businesses in which the investors had no stake in, according to authorities.

The businesses were DLJ Real Estate L.L.C., Empire Investments L.L.C., Empire Racing Stables L.L.C., and TI 13 L.L.C., according to a Securities and Exchange Commission lawsuit.

Bullard purchased a Shakopee home nearly 6,000 square feet in size in 2015 for $672,900, real estate records show.

He also made payments back to investors to falsely portray the appearance of actual returns, investors said.

The false returns encouraged more investment and kept defrauded investors happy while Bullard continued the scheme, according to authorities.

Bullard defrauded around 100 victims across several states, including Minnesota, out of $3.1 million over the course of the scheme, investigators said.

His legal troubles started in 2021 when the SEC successfully sued to have Empire Racing Stables L.L.C. and Bullard's other assets frozen.