A financial advisor who provided guidance to several Hollywood stars now faces federal charges in what officials say was an elaborate Ponzi-like scheme to cheat his clients out of $30 million.

Kenneth Starr, owner of New York-based Starr & Co., was arrested May 27, according to a joint statement by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, the New York County District Attorney’s Office and the Internal Revenue Service. He faces charges of wire fraud, fraud by an investment advisor and money laundering.

A complaint against Starr alleges that through his business, the financial advisor managed assets and provided financial planning for high net-worth and celebrity clientele. Starr would pay bills for his clients, assist them with tax filings and recommend investments, according to officials.

Starr is accused of defrauding his clients through two schemes, including one where he would secure money for investments on “sure deals,” then diverting that cash to himself or risk investments where he, his wife or other associates held an undisclosed financial interest, officials said.

The second type of scheme, which officials likened to a Ponzi scheme, occurred when Starr exercised direct control over the personal accounts of his clients, making unauthorized transfers to himself and others. When clients demanded payments Starr could not meet, he transferred funds among clients to the tune of $30 million, authorities indicated.

Alleging misappropriation of funds, officials claimed in one case Starr defrauded a former hedge-fund manager and well-known philanthropist, by transferring $2.2 million to an associate, of which only $500,000 had been authorized. Another client, only identified as “an actress,” had $1 million from her account transferred without her knowledge and replaced with $1 million from the account of another of Starr’s clients, officials claim.

Over the time period of 2008 to 2009, officials also allege that Starr defrauded a jeweler and his wife of nearly $14 million. Among the alleged recipients of part of that “investment” was Andrew Stein, a former New York assemblyman, also charged by federal officials with making false statements in an IRS filing and making false statements to federal officials concerning a shell company allegedly created by Starr to perpetrate his schemes.

While no specific celebrities were mentioned in the federal complaint, media reports indicate that Starr’s former clients included actor Wesley Snipes and photographer Annie Leibovitz, both of whom have experienced tax and investment issues over the past year.