Prosecutors say Utah Ponzi scheme defendant used Morse code to try to hire hit man

Prosecutors: Fraud suspect dictated hit letter

SALT LAKE CITY — Prosecutors say a Utah man tried to hire a hit man to kill witnesses in a fraud case against him by dictating a letter from jail by Morse code.

The disclosure came Tuesday as federal Magistrate Paul Warner rejected Jeffrey Mowen’s request to be freed until trial.

Warner ruled that Mowen was not only a flight risk but a dangerous man. The judge also ruled against Mowen’s effort to stop U.S. marshals from selling a collection of around 200 cars to pay back investors. But Mowen was given seven days to object to auction prices.

The 47-year-old Mowen was arrested in April in Panama on charges of running a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme, then indicted in October on additional charges. Prosecutors say he used jail phones to try to dictate a plot by Morse code.