SEATTLE, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – A Ponzi schemer that used to reside in Bellevue was sentenced Friday to over 14 years in prison.

Volodimyr Pigida was convicted of fraud and fleeing prior to sentencing.

According to the Department of Justice, the 49-year-old defrauded thousands of people in his $11 million Ponzi scheme. He was found guilty by jury in October 2022 for 26 felony counts related to his fraudulent activities.

Pigida and his wife Marina Bondarenko named their work-at-home scheme Trend Sound Promoter, where people bought ad-promoting packages. People who bought the packages were supposed to be paid for email marketing. The company’s accounts paid for the couple’s homes, expensive cars and yacht.

Pigida was found behind a false wall in a relative’s home in Florida after he did not appear for his sentencing hearing in Seattle last August. Law enforcement pulled him from hiding after a three-hour standoff.