The Rise and Fall of John Peter Galanis: A Life of White-Collar Crime

Early Life and Ambitions

Born in the bustling area of Boston, Massachusetts, in 1943, John Peter Galanis was destined for a life far removed from the humble beginnings of his father's diner and tourist motel. Seeking more than the small-town life, Galanis pursued law school, albeit briefly. His true calling, however, lay in the financial heart of America - Wall Street. It was there that he embarked on a career that would ultimately spiral into a series of notorious white-collar crimes.

The 1970s: The Beginning of a Criminal Empire

The year was 1971, and Galanis found himself embroiled in a legal quagmire. Investors in Armstrong Investors, a company with which Galanis was affiliated, filed a civil complaint in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. The case, known as Delfino v. Armstrong Investors S.A., sought to recover a staggering $13.5 million. They alleged their investments had been weakened by the fraudulent or negligent conduct of Armstrong and its partners, including the Everest Management Corporation, where Galanis held an officer position.

The legal trouble didn't stop there. Galanis faced nine criminal actions for violations of securities laws. Charged with looting securities and cash from domestic and offshore mutual funds, he had engaged in a sprawling scheme to defraud these funds. The consequence? A prison sentence that would mark the beginning of his long history with the law.

The 1980s: A Decade of Deception

As the 1980s dawned, Galanis's criminal endeavors showed no sign of slowing. On June 8, 1983, he, along with two former vice presidents from Chase Manhattan Bank, was charged with stealing $9.5 million through fraudulent loans dating back to 1978 and 1979. The formidable Manhattan District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau spearheaded the case.

Galanis's audacity reached new heights in 1987 when he was charged in both federal and state courts with stealing over $115 million from investors and cheating the government of millions in false tax deductions. Promoting a tax shelter program, he orchestrated a massive racketeering scheme, as described by then United States Attorney Rudolph W. Giuliani. Galanis's company duped investors with the promise of tax deductions far exceeding their actual investments, using fabricated loans to support their claims.

In a parallel New York state case, Galanis was accused of selling bogus real-estate tax shelters involving the Nashua Trust Company, supposedly acquiring and developing non-casino hotels in Atlantic City. The reality? None of these developments materialized. Instead, the $75 million entrusted by 1,400 investors was funneled into paying off other debts, with $6 million finding its way to Galanis's family. Even famed comedy actor Eddie Murphy found himself ensnared in Galanis's web of deceit.

September 16, 1987, marked another low point for Galanis. A 58-count Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) indictment was brought against him and eight others for a racketeering enterprise based in Greenwich, Connecticut. Galanis's company had seized control of three mutual funds in Oakland, California, defrauding them of $3.9 million by selling securities at inflated prices. He also fraudulently obtained control of the Columbia Federal Savings Bank of Westport, Connecticut, by deceiving the Federal Home Loan Bank Board.

By September 29, 1988, the law had caught up with him once more. Galanis was sentenced to 27 years in federal prison after being convicted of 44 counts of participating in a racketeering enterprise. At his sentencing, he reflected, "My arrogance did not allow me to fully examine the events through another's eyes. I thought of myself as a kind man, imparting good values, not a racketeer." Despite the lengthy sentence, he would only serve 13 years before his release.

The 2000s: A Fugitive and a New Fraud

In 2001, shortly after being released on a work-release program, Galanis vanished, becoming a fugitive. However, his story was far from over. By 2019, he found himself back in the courtroom, convicted yet again, this time for defrauding a Native American tribal entity and various investment advisory clients of tens of millions of dollars through a deceptive bond scam. The fallout from this scheme was extensive, involving his son, Jason Galanis, a former business partner of Hunter Biden. Jason was convicted in the same scheme in 2017 and sentenced to 173 months.

Today, at 76, John Peter Galanis resides behind bars at the Federal Correctional Institution, Terminal Island in San Pedro, California, serving a 10-year sentence. His life story is a stark testament to the corrosive power of greed and the relentless pursuit of wealth at any cost.

Sources

• WBAL TV News
• John Galanis Sentenced To 10 Years In Prison
• Defense attorney John C. Klotz website
• SEC Annual Report, 1973
• "Shelter Promoter is charged," New York Times, May 13, 1987
• Jail Charles Hurwitz website
• "Behind The Project, A Man Protected By A Maze," Philadelphia Inquirer, June 15, 1986
• "The Long Reach Of John Peter Galanis," Forbes, September 18, 2000
• "8 Indicted In Fraud Case," The Association Press, September 17, 1987
• "27-Year Term For Fraud," Associated Press, September 30, 1988
• Feds: "Ecstasy ring linked to mob, Kosovo," United Press International, October 25, 2001
• "Swindler walks away from work release program," Boston Globe, January 22, 2001
• New York Times article, March 31, 2025
• ABC News article on Trump granting clemency

For more information, visit the Wikipedia page on John Peter Galanis.