DC Solar Accountant Ronald Roach Sentenced for Role in $912 Million Investment Fraud Ronald Roach, the former accountant for DC Solar, has been sentenced for his involvement in a massive investment fraud scheme that defrauded investors of over $912 million. The scheme involved misrepresenting revenue from leased solar generators. This sentencing marks another conviction in the ongoing effort to hold individuals accountable for the company's fraudulent activities. U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd has imposed a sentence on Ronald Roach, a 59-year-old resident of Walnut Creek, bringing a significant chapter to a close in the extensive DC Solar fraud case. The prosecution, led by U.S. Attorney Eric Grant of the Eastern District of California, detailed how Roach, acting as the company's accountant, played a critical role in a sophisticated scheme that defrauded investors out of more than $912 million between 2011 and 2018. Roach, along with his co-defendant Joseph Bayliss, were the first employees of DC Solar to enter guilty pleas, a decision they made on October 22, 2019. Their cooperation was instrumental in the government's efforts to dismantle the fraudulent enterprise. The core of the DC Solar fraud involved the company's purported manufacturing and leasing of mobile solar generators mounted on trailers. These generators were marketed to investors as crucial for providing emergency power to cell towers and for lighting at large events. A key enticement for investors was the prospect of generous tax credits due to the solar nature of the equipment. However, the investigation revealed a fundamental deception: investors never actually took possession of these generators. Instead, DC Solar orchestrated a complex system of leasing the generators back from the investors and then claiming to sublease them to third parties to generate revenue. The fraud was further perpetuated by misrepresenting the actual demand for these generators from external clients. Roach, in his capacity as accountant, actively contributed to masking the minimal third-party rental demand. According to U.S. Attorney Grant, approximately 94-95% of the lease revenue reported on DC Solar's financial statements were merely internal transfers disguised as new investor funds, while genuine third-party end-user demand never exceeded a mere 5%. This sentencing of Ronald Roach is the latest in a series of convictions and sentences handed down to individuals involved in the DC Solar scandal. The company's owner, whose name was not provided in the original text but was identified as pleading guilty in October to multiple counts of conspiracy, wire fraud, and bank fraud affecting a financial institution, received a substantial sentence of 11 years and 5 months in prison. Joseph Bayliss, Roach's co-defendant, was sentenced to three years in prison in November 2021 and ordered to pay $481.3 million in restitution. Beyond Roach and Bayliss, four other individuals have also faced sentencing in connection with the fraud. These include Paulette Carpoff, who received 11 years and 3 months in prison; Robert Karmann, the Chief Financial Officer, sentenced to six years in prison and ordered to pay $624 million in restitution; Ryan Guidry, who received a 6½-year prison sentence and $619,415,900 in restitution; and Alan Hansen, sentenced to 39 months in prison. U.S. Attorney Grant emphasized that none of the eight defendants proceeded to trial, with each ultimately accepting responsibility for their actions and pleading guilty. He further stated that this outcome is a testament to years of diligent investigative work and a prosecution characterized by meticulous attention to detail, underscoring the commitment to holding those accountable who exploit others for personal gain