A federal indictment has been unsealed charging William Sarris, founder of pre-IPO investment platform Linqto Inc., with securities fraud, broker-dealer fraud, wire fraud and conspiracy offenses, according to prosecutors in the Southern District of New York.
Deputy U.S. Attorney Sean S. Buckley and FBI New York Field Office Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. announced the unsealing of the indictment. Sarris, 75, of Monterey, California, was arrested and will be presented in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, according to the announcement.
Sarris’ former second-in-command, Joseph Endoso, 66, of Ross, California, pleaded guilty to an information before U.S. District Judge Denise L. Cote on Aug. 27. Endoso is cooperating with the government, according to the release.
Prosecutors allege that from 2020 through 2025, Sarris defrauded Linqto customers by exploiting their lack of visibility into the true prices of the private securities in which they invested. Linqto marketed itself as a way for ordinary investors to invest in private companies expected eventually to offer securities on a public exchange, according to the indictment. Sarris is accused of manufacturing false scarcity to drive up prices, manipulating Linqto’s pricing model while telling customers they were paying “market” prices and imposing markups that, in some cases, exceeded 200%.
“In the private markets, which lack the pricing transparency of a public exchange, investors rely on the honesty of those offering access,” Buckley said, adding that Sarris and Endoso allegedly lied about market prices, fabricated scarcity and imposed “staggering markups.”
Prosecutors allege Sarris pursued the scheme to make Linqto appear successful and growing as he sought a way to cash out his sizeable equity stake in the company. When Linqto’s finances came under pressure in January 2025, Sarris allegedly sold shares allocated to customers’ holdings without telling them. Linqto collapsed into bankruptcy by mid-2025, by which time the alleged markup scheme had drawn more than $450 million from over 13,000 customers, prosecutors said.
Sarris faces two counts of securities fraud, one count of broker-dealer fraud and one count of wire fraud, each carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. He also faces two conspiracy counts, each carrying a maximum five-year sentence, according to the release. Endoso pleaded guilty to one count each of securities fraud and broker-dealer fraud, along with two conspiracy counts.
The maximum penalties are prescribed by Congress, and any sentence would be determined by a judge.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force is handling the case. The Securities and Exchange Commission assisted in the investigation.
The charges in the indictment are accusations. Sarris is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
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