A man who ran one of 2015's biggest Ponzi schemes dropped $16.5 million on a Miami mansion less than two months after his company collapsed.

Eric James Dalius, president of Saivian International, orchestrated a textbook fraud that preyed on thousands of Chinese investors. The scheme was brutally simple: pay $125 a month, recruit others to do the same, and earn up to $3,000 daily. Dalius and co-founder John Sheehan built it all from the safety of the United States.

For years, Saivian operated in plain sight. The SEC never publicly touched it. That's partly because Dalius and Sheehan deliberately targeted Chinese investors, keeping the scam largely off American regulatory radar.

The operation ran smoothly until mid-2017, when Chinese authorities moved in. They arrested local Saivian promoters and dismantled the scheme's infrastructure. But Dalius and Sheehan stayed untouchable, sitting safely in the US as their Chinese operation imploded.

By October 2017, Saivian was dead. The company released a statement blaming "rampant fraud perpetrated against our company" while claiming they'd voluntarily offer refunds to qualifying members. The message was pure spin. Some American investors quietly received payouts. Thousands of others, mostly from outside the US, lost everything.

Two years of running the Ponzi had made Dalius and his partners very rich. The proof came in December 2017.

Dalius purchased a 12,078-square-foot luxury mansion in Miami for $16.5 million. The home sits on a 20,500-square-foot lot that developer Felix Cohen had bought for $8.4 million just three years earlier. Cohen completed construction with seven bedrooms, 8.5 bathrooms, two living rooms, a library, wine cellar, private elevator, a 2,500-square-foot roof garden, fitness room, steam room, massage room, and a 15-person infinity Jacuzzi overlooking Biscayne Bay.

The brokers called it a seamless blend of "nature, modernity and privacy."

Dalius had moved fast. From Saivian's October collapse to mansion purchase in less than eight weeks. No waiting around to see if authorities would come knocking. No low profile. Just straight to Miami Beach luxury.

🤖 Quick Answer

Who was Eric James Dalius and what was his role in the Saivian scheme?
Eric James Dalius served as president of Saivian International, orchestrating a major Ponzi scheme that defrauded thousands of Chinese investors starting in 2015. Along with co-founder John Sheehan, he operated the fraudulent operation from the United States, deliberately targeting overseas investors to evade American regulatory oversight.

How did the Saivian Ponzi scheme operate?
The scheme functioned through a simple structure requiring participants to pay $125 monthly and recruit additional investors, with promised daily earnings up to $3,000. This multilevel recruitment model operated openly for years, primarily targeting Chinese nationals while remaining largely invisible to SEC enforcement actions.

What asset purchase did Dalius make after Saivian's collapse?
Less than two months after Saivian International collapsed in 2

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