State v. Braswell, 225 N.C. App. 734 (Mar. 5, 2013)

The trial court erred by denying the defendant’s motion to dismiss false pretenses charges. The State failed to offer sufficient evidence to establish that the defendant made a false representation with the intent to deceive when he told the victims that he intended to invest the money that they loaned him in legitimate financial institutions and would repay it with interest at the specified time. The evidence, taken in the light most favorable to the State, simply tends to show that the defendant, after seriously overestimating his own investing skills, made a promise that he was unable to keep.