Two executives of Alpharetta-based Drive Planning have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in what prosecutors called Georgia's largest Ponzi scheme, a $380 million fraud that bilked more than 2,000 investors.

U.S. District Judge Tiffany Johnson sentenced former chief operating officer David Bradford, 53, to 51 months in prison on Aug. 13 in Atlanta, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Chief administrative officer Julie Edwards received a two-year sentence on Aug. 14 after the judge rejected a request for probation, ruling it insufficient for her money laundering charge, the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported.

Todd Burkhalter, 54, the firm's founder and CEO, was scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 14. Prosecutors sought 17.5 to 20 years for Burkhalter; his attorneys asked for 14.

All three pleaded guilty in separate deals with federal prosecutors. Bradford, a Peachtree Corners resident, pleaded guilty in December 2025 to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Burkhalter, a St. Petersburg, Florida, resident, pleaded guilty in January 2026. Edwards pleaded guilty in early 2026 to a money laundering charge tied to using roughly $630,000 in investor funds to buy a house.

Drive Planning operated from offices on Avalon Boulevard in Alpharetta from late 2021 until approximately June 2024. The firm marketed two products: a "Cash Out Real Estate Fund" that promised investors 10% returns every six months from tax liens, and Burkhalter's "Real Estate Acceleration Loan," the larger scheme that accounted for the bulk of the $380 million in losses.

Bradford personally created the marketing brochure for the CORE Fund, which was distributed to the firm's sales agents, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. The firm stopped investing any money in the fund after December 2022 but kept soliciting new investors even after the SEC began investigating in March 2024, prosecutors said. The CORE Fund alone took in at least $4.1 million.

Investor money instead funded luxury spending. Federal prosecutors detailed purchases including a $2 million yacht, a $2.1 million condo in Cabo San Lucas, $800,000 in vehicles including a Prevost Marathon motorcoach and two Land Rovers, millions in private jet travel and $320,000 on clothing, jewelry and beauty treatments.

Bradford was also ordered to pay $4.2 million in restitution and serve three years of supervised release. U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg said in a December 2025 news release that Bradford betrayed the trust of clients, family and friends by encouraging them to invest millions in bogus schemes.

The firm is permanently closed. Court-appointed receiver Kenneth D. Murena filed a motion on Aug. 11 to approve a final claims determination and distribution plan for investors with allowed claims. The amount available for distribution has not been disclosed.

The receivership website also warns investors of an ongoing scam in which someone falsely claims "Blackstone Investment Corp Inc" acquired Drive Planning and can accelerate recoveries.

The SEC's civil enforcement action against Drive Planning and Burkhalter remains pending in Atlanta federal court.