FLORIDA — AGAIN: Man Arrested Amid Allegations He Swindled Investors In ‘Yogurt-Based Product To Re-Grow Hair’; Joseph P. Fox Of Telogenesis Inc. Was Recidivist Offender, State Says
A Florida man who served jail time in an earlier scheme in California has been arrested by the Miami Beach Police Department and agents from the Florida Office of Financial Regulation (OFR), amid allegations he swindled investors in a “yogurt-based product to re-grow hair,” OFR said.
Joseph P. Fox, president of Telogenesis Inc. of Miami Beach, was charged with Grand Theft and Organized Scheme to Defraud in his sale of Telogenesis stock.
Beginning in 2007, Fox sold Telogenesis stock for $1,000 a share to at least 59 investors. All in all, he gathered $380,000 in the scheme and used most of the money to support his lifestyle, OFR said.
In 2002, OFR said, Fox was charged with grand theft in California and served 270 days in jail.
The Telogenesis scheme was similar to the California scheme, OFR said.
Fox made “false representations” about the financial soundness of Telogenesis and its development of the yogurt-based hair product, positioning it as “a breakthrough in the cosmetic industry,” OFR said.
A website from which a Telogenesis product was pitched as being available “very soon” for $1,999 included links to medical journals that appeared to have no tie to the product — and also to Oprah Winfrey’s website.
Winfrey’s site also appeared to have no tie to the Telogenesis product, which was advertised on IGrowHair.com
It is not uncommon for hucksters to try to create the appearance that prominent medical organizations, celebrities and the government endorse products when they do not.
Patrick,
How many times do you discover that frauds are run by repeat offenders? It seems to me that a larceny conviction ought to be a tip off that something is not right.
The operator of the WorldPlus scam in Alaska had a conviction for embezzeling from the US Post Office. It is too bad that we can’t have a fraud registry similar to the sex offender registry.
Hello Kenneth,
It is pretty common. ASD’s Andy Bowdoin had previous fraud troubles. So did Clarence Busby, the president of Golden Panda Ad Builder, the so-called “Chinese” option for ASD members.
Here is a quick (incomplete) list of stories that reference allegations of recidivism or of committing crimes while actually jailed or on probation:
https://patrickpretty.com/2010/02/09/feds-charge-husband-and-wife-in-alleged-work-at-home-scheme-philip-pestrichello-is-recidivist-offender/
https://patrickpretty.com/2010/01/12/san-diego-county-man-on-probation-for-ponzi-scheme-starts-new-scheme-prosecutors-say-edmundo-rubi-targets-filipino-community-for-second-time/
https://patrickpretty.com/2010/11/09/feds-charge-robert-stinson-criminally-on-heels-of-sec-lawsuit-prosecutors-say-lifes-good-operator-stole-more-than-17-million-in-ponzi-scheme-wired-money-even-as-fbi-was-conducting-raid/
https://patrickpretty.com/2010/08/04/sec-felons-recidivists-pushed-green-energy-securities-swindle-through-california-boiler-room-6-people-charged-in-11-million-fraud/
https://patrickpretty.com/2010/03/29/ftc-gives-nod-to-bbb-for-helping-it-solve-advanced-fee-scam-operated-by-recidivist-offender-james-nicholson-banned-for-life-from-telemarketing-hits-with-17-2-million-judgment-loses-power-boat/
https://patrickpretty.com/2010/02/04/frank-constantino-convicted-of-racketeering-related-charges-in-georgia-securities-fraud-case-with-ties-to-belize-victim-in-2-7-million-scheme-was-83-year-old-woman/
https://patrickpretty.com/2010/09/03/prisoner-who-ran-scam-from-florida-jail-sentenced-to-21-years-in-federal-prison-willoughby-farr-of-west-palm-beach-operated-cramming-scheme/
https://patrickpretty.com/2010/12/17/captured-fbi-nabs-perry-and-rachelle-griggs-in-arizona-fugitive-ponzi-couple-will-be-transported-to-hawaii-to-face-charges-they-bilked-investors-while-perry-griggs-was-in-prison/
https://patrickpretty.com/2010/12/17/bulletin-another-false-liens-case-andrew-isaac-chance-charged-with-filing-1-3-billion-bogus-claim-against-federal-prosecutor-in-maryland/
NOTES:
** Minnesota Ponzi schemer Trevor Cook had trouble with the NFA a few years before he graduated to massive scams.
*** Some purveyors of MLMs race from scam program to scam program — and then claim to be surprised the latest program was a scam. It’s easy to look at that as a form of recidivism.
Patrick