Archive for May 2011

URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: FTC Goes To Federal Court To Block Alleged $467 Million Scam Operating Globally Online; International Cooperation Cited In Exposing Colossal Fraud Caper, Officials Say

URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: FTC Goes To Federal Court To Block Alleged $467 Million Scam Operating Globally Online; International Cooperation Cited In Exposing Colossal Fraud Caper, Officials Say

BULLETIN: UPDATED 3:50 P.M. EDT (U.S.A.) The FTC has gone to federal court to halt what it described as a $467 million, online fraud scheme operating across international borders. The scheme was exposed through international cooperation among the FTC, the Canada Competition Bureau, Service Alberta, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Alberta Partnership Against Cross […]

As Promos On Ponzi Forums Continue And Members Claim IRS Recognition, Club Asteria Acknowledges That Its Members Used PayPal ‘To Cheat Fellow Members’; Says Fraudsters Were Turned Over To Unidentified ‘Authorities’; Existing Members Of Virginia-Based Firm Told To Use Offshore Processors

As Promos On Ponzi Forums Continue And Members Claim IRS Recognition, Club Asteria Acknowledges That Its Members Used PayPal 'To Cheat Fellow Members'; Says Fraudsters Were Turned Over To Unidentified 'Authorities'; Existing Members Of Virginia-Based Firm Told To Use Offshore Processors

In June 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice used its Blog to warn about the emerging threat of “mass marketing fraud,” specifically citing the criminal allegations of a $70 million Ponzi fraud against Nicholas Smirnow of Pathway To Prosperity (P2P). P2P was promoted on the TalkGold and MoneyMakerGroup Ponzi forums. A little over a month […]

URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: Thanh-Viet ‘Jeremy’ Cao Sentenced To 30 Years In Federal Prison; Ponzi Schemer Also Filed False Liens Against Federal Officials, Prosecutors Said

BULLETIN: Convicted Ponzi schemer Thanh-Viet “Jeremy” Cao, who also was accused of filing false liens against federal officials and has been linked to the “sovereign citizen” movement by the Anti-Defamation League, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison in the Ponzi case. Cao was convicted in December 2010. The U.S. Secret Service and the […]

ANNOUNCEMENT: PP Blog Outages Possible

Dear Readers, Some of you may experience availability issues today and tomorrow as the PP Blog performs maintenance. Intermittent outages may occur in the next 24 to 48 hours. Although the Blog is expected to be largely available, it may not be accessible in all areas until the maintenance is completed. Our apologies for the […]

Post On Infamous Ponzi Forum Claims PayPal Has Frozen Club Asteria Funds; Virginia-Based Firm Reportedly Slashes Weekly ‘Earnings’ Payout And Arbitrarily Withholds Payments To Members

Post On Infamous Ponzi Forum Claims PayPal Has Frozen Club Asteria Funds; Virginia-Based Firm Reportedly Slashes Weekly 'Earnings' Payout And Arbitrarily Withholds Payments To Members

UPDATED 9:37 A.M. EDT (U.S.A.) A post on the MoneyMakerGroup Ponzi scheme and criminals’ forum claims that PayPal has frozen funds of Club Asteria (CA), a Virginia-based firm that trades on the name of the World Bank and does not publish verifiable financial data. There was no independent confirmation of the claim on CA’s landing […]

Now, An Alleged ‘Sham Cemetery’ And $90 Million ‘Promissory Note’ Scam; Feds Say Men ‘Concocted’ Millions Of Dollars In ‘Fake Partnership Losses’ In Bizarre Tax Scheme Hatched Through ‘Shell Companies’

Now, An Alleged 'Sham Cemetery' And $90 Million 'Promissory Note' Scam; Feds Say Men 'Concocted' Millions Of Dollars In 'Fake Partnership Losses' In Bizarre Tax Scheme Hatched Through 'Shell Companies'

If the “redemption” scams in which delusional hucksters tell enraptured prospects that the government maintains secret accounts Americans can tap to qualify for multimillion-dollar tax refunds and pay for everything from cars to speeding tickets haven’t caused your brain to shut down from suspending too much disbelief, you now may have another opportunity to fry […]

BULLETIN: FLORIDA — AGAIN (VIA NEW YORK): SEC Says Men Gathered $8 Million Through Lure Of Nonexistent IPO And ‘Contracts’ With Famous Companies; Angelo Cuomo And Recidivist George Garcy Of E-Z Media Inc. Charged With Securities Fraud

BULLETIN: FLORIDA -- AGAIN (VIA NEW YORK): SEC Says Men Gathered $8 Million Through Lure Of Nonexistent IPO And 'Contracts' With Famous Companies; Angelo Cuomo And Recidivist George Garcy Of E-Z Media Inc. Charged With Securities Fraud

BULLETIN: A recidivist securities offender in Florida and his business partner in New York have been charged by the SEC with fraud in a case that alleges they pumped an IPO that never happened. Charged in the civil case were George Garcy, 54, of Aventura, Fla., and Angelo Cuomo, 62, of Staten Island, N.Y. Garcy […]

URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: Raj Rajaratnam Guilty In Insider-Trading Case; Sentence Potentially Could Exceed Madoff’s 150 Years

URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: Raj Rajaratnam Guilty In Insider-Trading Case; Sentence Potentially Could Exceed Madoff's 150 Years

BULLETIN: Raj Rajaratnam has been found guilty of all 14 counts of conspiracy and securities fraud filed against him in the Galleon Group insider-trading case. The verdict came on the 12th day of jury deliberations. It deals a devastating blow to Rajaratnam, but is a major win for prosecutors. The case was brought by the […]

BULLETIN: Google Says Justice Department Is Investigating Its Advertising Program; Search Giant Sets Aside $500 Million, Notes ‘Potential Resolution’

BULLETIN: Google Says Justice Department Is Investigating Its Advertising Program; Search Giant Sets Aside $500 Million, Notes 'Potential Resolution'

DISCLOSURE: Until Jan. 9 of this year, the PP Blog displayed Google ads. See this post. BULLETIN: Google disclosed in a regulatory filing yesterday that its advertising program was under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice. The company announced that it has taken a charge of $500 million “in connection with a potential resolution.” […]

Man, 85, Accused Of Selling Unregistered Securities In ‘Shipwreck’ Venture; Recidivist Huckster Hawked Sunken-Treasure Offer While Banned Because Of Previous Misconduct, BCSC Says

Man, 85, Accused Of Selling Unregistered Securities In 'Shipwreck' Venture; Recidivist Huckster Hawked Sunken-Treasure Offer While Banned Because Of Previous Misconduct, BCSC Says

Ten years ago, when John Arthur Roche McLoughlin was about 75 years old, the British Columbia Securities Commission accused him of selling unregistered securities in a venture known as Grandby Development Corp., a purported fertilizer company. BCSC imposed a five-year ban that prohibited McLoughlin from acting as a director or officer of any issuer. Because […]

RECOMMENDED READING/VIEWING: Washington Post/Bloomberg Report On ‘The Ponzi Schemer Next Door’; FINRA/AARP Share Tale Of Purported ‘Bank President’ Who Lured Victims While ‘Craving Cocaine’ At Pay Phones From Which He Set Up Marks

RECOMMENDED READING/VIEWING: Washington Post/Bloomberg Report On 'The Ponzi Schemer Next Door'; FINRA/AARP Share Tale Of Purported 'Bank President' Who Lured Victims While 'Craving Cocaine' At Pay Phones From Which He Set Up Marks

The Washington Post and Bloomberg published Bob Carden’s story about how smart people get sucked into investment scams. The story is titled, “Investment fraud isn’t relegated to Wall Street: Beware the Ponzi schemer next door.” Carden produced the video “Tricks of the Trade: Outsmarting Investment Fraud.” Editor John Warnock assembled the package, which shows some […]