The identities of Donnelly’s investors have not been released. It is unknown if any are from the Charlottesville area

John M. Donnelly appeared this morning in Charlottesville’s federal court after being arrested Wednesday.

An Albemarle County man is facing civil and criminal charges in connection with a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme allegedly run out of an office suite in downtown Charlottesville.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged a Charlottesville resident with operating a multi-million-dollar Ponzi scheme.