SAN DIEGO -- He wasn't on the scale of Bernard Madoff but some 30 years ago San Diego investors fell victim to a similar Ponzi scheme developed by J. David Dominelli. It started back in 1979, and five years later everything fell apart.

Jacques Peeters now acts as course marshall a few times a week at the Mount Woodson Golf Club. Like the course which winds its way through the Ramona hillside, the Belgium-born Peeters eventually wound his way to San Diego. In the 80's a friend here told him about an investment opportunity.

"You know, the guy was a good friend of mine and I believed him and I invested in J. David and that's how it started," Peeters said.

The investiment was with Jerry Dominelli who set up shop as J. David And Company in La Jolla. He promised 40 to 50 per cent return on investment. Although a bank manager cautioned against it, Jacques put his house up as collateral.

"You know he told me, he says, 'I wouldn't do this, Jacques. It doesn't look good.' But I was young and foolish and said, 'nah I'm going to go for it,'" Peeters said.

Dominelli promoted himself as a wizard in currency trading. What he really was, was more adept at living a lavish lifestyle. He needed an increasing number of new investors to pay off previous investors. The checks he wrote began to bounce.

After fleeing to the Carribbean island of Monserat, Dominelli was eventually brought back to San Diego to face charges. He pledged to pay investors back but there wasn't much left. Peeters who had invested $40,000 got very little back in return.

"I recovered very little: maybe $2,000 to $3,000, whatever they recovered from him," Peeters said.

After bilking investors out of an estimated $80 million, Dominelli was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

As for Jacques Peeters, he cautions, "If it's too good to be true, think about it."

It was, at the time, the biggest financial scandal affecting people throughout southern California.

Dominelli suffered a massive stroke and served only half of his 20-year sentence. He was paroled in 1996.