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Tag: Imperia Invest IBC

  • SEC: Claims That Traffic Monsoon Was A Successful Advertising Business ‘Merely An Illusion’

    “The complaint alleges that more than 99% of Traffic Monsoon’s revenue is derived from new investor funds, making claims that it is a successful advertising business merely an illusion.” — U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, July 28, 2016

    Charles Scoville.
    Charles Scoville.

    EDITOR’S NOTE: This (below) is the full litigation statement of the SEC on its Ponzi case against Traffic Monsoon and Charles Scoville. The statement was issued today. It asserts Traffic Monsoon “raised more than $207 million from investors worldwide, primarily in the U.S., India and Russia.” The case was brought July 26 in Utah federal court. The photo (left) of Charles Scoville is a screen shot by the PP Blog of a video on YouTube featuring Scoville. The SEC’s Salt Lake City office, referenced in the statement below, has experience uncovering online schemes, including the infamous Imperia IBC caper targeted at Americans and others with hearing impairments. Like  Traffic Monsoon, Imperia was a Ponzi-board “program” with a presence on sites such as MoneyMakerGroup and TalkGold. 

    **_______________________________**

    U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

    Litigation Release No. 23604 / July 28, 2016

    Securities and Exchange Commission v. Traffic Monsoon et al., No. 2:16-cv-00832-JNP (D. Utah filed July 26, 2016)

    SEC Halts $207 Million Internet-Based Ponzi Scheme

    The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that it has obtained an asset freeze against the operator of a Utah-based international Ponzi scheme that raised more than $207 million from investors worldwide, primarily in the U.S., India and Russia.

    In a complaint filed in federal court in Salt Lake City on July 26, the SEC alleges that Traffic Monsoon LLC and Charles Scoville, the company’s only member operated an Internet-based Ponzi scheme that they falsely represented to investors was an advertising company. According to the SEC complaint, Scoville began operating Traffic Monsoon in October 2014 as a combination Internet traffic exchange and pay-per-click program and recruited more than 162,000 investors around the world. According to the complaint, although Traffic Monsoon markets itself as a highly successful company, nearly all of its revenue is generated by other investors, not its products or services. The complaint alleges that more than 99% of Traffic Monsoon’s revenue is derived from new investor funds, making claims that it is a successful advertising business merely an illusion.

    The SEC’s complaint alleges that Traffic Monsoon and Scoville violated Sections 5(a), 5(c) and 17(a)(1) and (3) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5(a) and (c) thereunder. Among other things, the SEC’s complaint seeks permanent injunctions, prohibiting further violations of the laws charged, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains plus prejudgment interest and civil penalties from Traffic Monsoon and Scoville.

    The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Alison Okinaka, Scott Frost and Cheryl Mori of the SEC’s Salt Lake Regional Office. Daniel Wadley is leading the SEC’s litigation.

    SEC Complaint

    [SOURCE] http://www.sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/2016/lr23604.htm

    **_______________________________**




  • Was An Unlicensed Money-Services Business In The United States Gathering Funds For The Alleged UFunClub/UToken Ponzi Scheme In Thailand?

    This screen shot from the "shop" section of website of UTokenUSA shows that orders were being solicited for UTokens and prices between $635 and $12,100. Not shown is a solicitation for orders at a level of $57,500. Whether orders successfully were placed is unclear. At some point, these words appeared on the site: "?01-31-2015? In order to work with the system planning, the Utrade trading system will pause for 7 days, from 00:00am, 1st February 2015 and re-open 00:01am 8th February 2015 for system upgrades and conversion of tradable UToken for investment liquidity planning. We will still be able to create membership accounts, but you will not be able to buy, sell, or trade Utokens until February 8, 2015."
    This screen shot from the “shop” section of website of UTokenUSA shows that orders were being solicited for UTokens at prices between $635 and $12,100. Not shown is a solicitation for orders at a level of $57,500. Whether orders successfully were placed is unclear. At some point, these words appeared on the site: “[01-31-2015] In order to work with the system planning, the Utrade trading system will pause for 7 days, from 00:00am, 1st February 2015 and re-open 00:01am 8th February 2015 for system upgrades and conversion of tradable UToken for investment liquidity planning.
    We will still be able to create membership accounts, but you will not be able to buy, sell, or trade Utokens until February 8, 2015.”
    In March 2015, as part of its coverage of the WCM777 cross-border scam operating out of the United States, the PP Blog reported that court-appointed receiver Krista L. Freitag said this in a Feb. 27 court filing (italics added):

    “Many investors gave cash to the company and to their leaders (or upline sponsors) who then deposited the cash along with other investor funds.” (Click here to read “WCM777: More Theft And Money Laundering MLM-Style.”)

    Back in 2010, something similar happened in the deeply disturbing Imperia Invest IBC scam that appears to have operated offshore and definitely targeted people with hearing impairments. The SEC first charged Imperia and, in 2011, charged alleged pitchman Jody Dunn. Millions of dollars went missing.

    Dunn may not have learned his lesson. His name later appeared as an alleged “winner” in Zeek Rewards, yet another cross-border MLM/network-marketing debacle. Zeek, operating from the United States, allegedly plucked $897 million. Some of the money allegedly ended up in places such as Moldova, the Cook Islands and the Turks and Caicos.

    Moving forward to the 2014 TelexFree scheme taken down by the SEC and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, what do we see? Well, allegations that TelexFree, too, had created conditions under which promoters were collecting money for the scheme and effectively becoming money mules.

    TelexFree may have gathered $1.8 BILLION — yes, billion with a “b.”

    Welcome to the black markets of MLM/network marketing. The schemes may feature in-house transfer vessels in which participants can transfer money or cash-earning investment points to other members in underground fashion. Promoters also can do back-alley deals with recruits, opening up second and subsequent black-market tiers.

    BehindMLM.com reported yesterday that INTERPOL was about to become involved in the cross-border investigation into UFunClub/UToken that originated in Thailand. If it happens, it’s an encouraging sign.

    UFunClub/UToken may have plucked more than $1.17 BILLION.

    Separately, the PP Blog learned yesterday that a UFunClub/UToken promoters’ group known as UFUN Team USA had published a promo that claimed this (italics/bolding added):

    We blog, tweet, and write about the latest news on UFUN and UTokens. Our team provides secure transaction exchange of physical currency to UToken digital currency from all around the world. Our service at UTokenUSA includes:

    1. Purchasing UTokens through our website.
    2. Guaranteed safe transfer of payment to UFUN.
    3. UFUN Account Setup – **Setup time varies 1-5 business days.**
    4. UToken & UFUN Support.
    5. Referral/Downline Support – We help setup up your referrals under you.
    6. Latest News and Updated on UFUN & UTokens.
    7. Discount Coupons for you to offer to future members.

    This UFunClub/UToken promoters' group claimed recruits could purchase UTokens through its website and that the promoters "Guaranteed safe transfer of payment to UFUN."
    This UFunClub/UToken promoters’ group claimed recruits could purchase UTokens through its website and that the promoters “Guaranteed safe transfer of payment to UFUN.”

    This leads to questions about whether an unlicensed Money Services Business was gathering funds for another unlicensed Money Services Business. UToken promoters claim the value of the purported digital currency only can rise and never can fall.

    The UFUN Team USA site published a phone number with the 323 Area Code in Greater Los Angeles. That’s the same area from which WCM777 was operating.

    Like any number of schemes, UFunClub/UToken has been positioned as a “passive” investment opportunity that already has created anywhere from 200 “millionaires” to 5,000, depending on the source of the claims.

    This brings questions about an offering fraud and the sale of unregistered securities into play. The same sorts of questions existed with WCM777, Imperia, Zeek and TelexFree.

    As the screen shot below taken from a YouTube promo shows, UFunClub/UToken did an in-house announcement about the “THE CONVERSION OF TRADABLE UTOKEN TO INVESTMENT POINTS” — apparently on Jan. 31.

    Source: Screen shot from a YouTube video with a publication date of Feb. 10, 2015.
    Source: Screen shot from a YouTube video with a publication date of Feb. 10, 2015.

    Some American MLMers/network marketers have claimed they traveled from the United States to Thailand to vet UFunClub/UToken and found the “program” to be legitimate.

    The Thai police say the “program” is an international fraud scheme.

  • WCM777: More Theft And Money Laundering MLM-Style

    “Many investors gave cash to the company and to their leaders (or upline sponsors) who then deposited the cash along with other investor funds.” — Krista L. Freitag, court-appointed receiver in the WCM777 pyramid- and Ponzi case, Feb. 27, 2015

    wcm777forensicsEDITOR’S NOTE: Tens of millions of dollars allegedly flowed through WCM777 and related entities. At the bottom of this column, you’re going to read that an apparent apologist for accused Ponzi schemer Ming Xu is claiming the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is violating his human rights. Fair warning: You might want to have your vomit bucket at the ready . . .

    UPDATED 10:31 A.M. ET U.S.A. Here’s how you rob the Christians in an offering fraud that involves the sale of tens of millions of dollars in unregistered securities across state and national borders: You start an MLM “program,” get it in the churches and on YouTube, permit “leaders” to gather money from their enraptured audiences and put out the word that $1,999 returns $3,200 in 100 days.

    It might help if you have a storefront in, say, Peru. It also might help if you have, say, promoters willing to tout the “program” in webinars and from a “function room in a hotel in Massachusetts.” At the same time,  it might help if you have promoters willing to steal the intellectual property of the “Rocky” movie franchise to drive dollars into any of the “77 domestic and 23 foreign bank accounts” you’re using. (The bank-account information is sourced from a forensic accounting by Krista L. Freitag, the court-appointed receiver in the WCM777 case. It was filed Feb. 27 in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and is the basis for part of this PP Blog column. Links to exhibits are provided near the bottom of the column.)

    Along the way, it might help if you follow the standard blueprint from one MLM scam after another that calls for you to disarm skeptics by dropping the names of plenty of famous businesses, perhaps with the aim of hoping your “leaders” will follow your lead and do the same thing. Damn! Wouldn’t you know it! They did exactly that! (See link in first paragraph of this story.)

    Might you follow the blueprint of earlier scams such as Zeek Rewards that calls for you to get some of the money you’re gathering offshore, perhaps to Hong Kong?  You betcha!

    It might be particularly helpful if you make a calculation that a bank such as HSBC in Hong Kong might frown upon a subpoena issued in the United States and clam up when it comes to assisting the receiver appointed to your case after the SEC moves in.

    “To date, HSBC-Hong Kong has not responded to the Receiver’s requests/subpoena,” Freitag advised U.S. District Judge John F. Walter in her forensic accounting.

    Why would HSBC shun the receiver? Well, perhaps it had something to do with this July 2012 hearing by the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations that examined “U.S. Vulnerabilities to Money Laundering, Drugs, and Terrorist Financing: HSBC Case History.”

    Or maybe HSBC doesn’t want to open a new can of worms after it settled with the Justice Department in December 2012 by forfeiting $1.256 billion and entering into a deferred-prosecution agreement after it was accused of “willfully failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering (AML) program, willfully failing to conduct due diligence on its foreign correspondent affiliates, violating [the  International Emergency Economic Powers Act]  and violating [the Trading with the Enemy Act].”

    In May 2014, the SEC said it had an email from accused WCM777 Ponzi schemer Ming Xu to Vincent Messina, the asserted “general counsel” to a Xu business entity known as “World Capital Market.”

    “Vincent,” the alleged Ming Xu email to Messina began. “We have lots of members for our social capital company, WCM777 in Brazil. They paid us in Brazil. How to move the money legally from Brazil to USA or Hong Kong?”

    Whether Messina provided guidance on how to get money out of Brazil and move it to the United States and Hong Kong is unclear. Ming Xu’s email, however, suggests that WCM affiliates in Brazil, like their U.S. counterparts, also were collecting money directly from MLM recruits and that Ming Xu needed to find a way to get the cash under his control.

    This situation is eerily reminiscent of how the massive TelexFree scheme conducted business and almost certainly explains why the U.S. Department of Homeland Security got involved in the 2013/2014 TelexFree probe alongside the FBI and the SEC.

    It’s also highly reminiscent of a scam known as Imperia Invest IBC that stole millions of dollars from people with hearing impairments in 2010.

    Freitag says she has traced $5 million in Ming Xu proceeds to Messina, and Walter ordered Messina to return it. Only $2.133 million has been returned, Freitag says.

    Messina wasn’t just a lawyer; he was a WCM777 “insider,” the receiver alleges.

    Because Freitag has access to certain WCM777 banking records, she has been able to determine that “$29,404,996” went to HSBC in Hong Kong  “for 7 Receivership Entities and 1 individual.”

    Ming Xu used numerous companies as part of his overall money-moving scheme, the receiver contends.

    Here’s how she describes one transaction that occurred after WCM777 got in trouble with the Massachusetts Securities Division in late 2013 and agreed to return money to the fleeced investors in that state (italics added):

    “ . . . rescission payments were made to WCM777 investors in accordance with the Consent Order issued by the Massachusetts Securities Division. Bank records show that funds from ToPacific bank accounts were used to make payments to the Massachusetts WCM777 investors.”

    “ToPacific” was a company in the WCM777 fold.

    How circuitous were things within WCM777 (italics added):

    “the payment methods with which investors payments were made varied from third-party electronic disbursement (primarily Global Payout) to physical checks written directly on Receivership Entity bank accounts. There does not appear to be any consistency in the bank accounts from which investor checks were written. Rather, bank records indicate payments were made to investors from whichever accounts happen[ed] to have funds available at the time the payments were made.”

    The FBI has been warning about shell companies involved in crime and how banks and payment processors can get caught up in it since at least 2010. Even so, the WCM777 entities somehow managed to open at least 100 bank accounts while also gaining access to bank wires and at least one payment processor.

    Here’s how Freitag describes the overall scheme (italics added/light editing performed):

    “The Receivership Entities’ primary source of income was investor deposits, which was also the primary source of virtually all funds distributed to the investors; [t]he vast majority of the Receivership Entities’ business activities revolved around raising and distributing investor funds; [i]nvestor funds were so materially commingled between and among the Receivership Entities that the entities operated as a unitary enterprise, rather than as separate entities.”

    And while WCM777 recruits thought they were joining an MLM “program,” their money financed the purchases of two golf courses in California, several pieces of real estate, including one with live koi, and a series of purported investments elsewhere. These allegedly included jewelry or gold, oil and gas — and even piles of “jeans, shorts, pants and leggings” stored by Ming Xu’s sister.

    Ming Xu’s Mom allegedly got a new house, but not until after the cash to purchase the home had passed through bank accounts linked to Ming Xu and his sister.

    Earlier, Ming Xu used Twitter to send a declaration of love to the Peruvian people — on the letterhead of a company suspended in California.

    The Ming Xu Twitter account, which once claimed all would become known when “blood moons” appeared in the sky and published a picture of Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, whom Ming Xu had corralled at a networking event in California, now includes a link to a website that claims (italics added):

    U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was wrong to close down the company and confiscate about $43M cash asset and oil reserve asset of $50M. It has violated the company’s legal interests and human rights of Ming Xu.

    Read the exhibits from Freitag’s forensic accounting. (Here’s one; here’s the other.)

    As noted above, you might want to have a vomit bucket handy if you’re contemplating how certain MLM “programs” are operating these days in the era of epic white-collar fraud and while terrorism, beheadings and attacks on police are occurring.

  • Quebec Moves To Shut Down Site That Purportedly Monitors HYIP Programs, Saying Operator Is Aiding Scammers

    cautionflagIf the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) gets its way, a website styled maxhyip.com will be shut down and its operator blocked from promoting “products and services relating to various high-yield investment programs (HYIP[s]) to Quebeckers.”

    The alleged operator of the site is Steeve Beaudin, against whom AMF is seeking a cease-trade order and “administrative penalties.”

    Beaudin is “aiding HYIPs with illegal activities as securities advisers in Québec,” AMF alleges.

    Ads that promise preposterous payouts such as 135 percent in a day and 5,000 percent in 90 days appear on the site. There’s also a section that purports to monitor which sites are paying, which sites are not and which sites are experiencing “problems.”

    Many such purported monitoring sites follow largely the same blueprint MaxHYIP appears to be following, a situation that has contributed to HYIPs expanding across the globe and sucking in millions and millions of people. That a scheme is “paying” is not evidence that no fraud is occurring, although disingenuous HYIP promoters often position it as so to keep the Ponzi wheels greased.

    Such sites also may encourage so-called “test spends” as a means of enabling an HYIP scam to gain a head of steam. If a successful payout results from the “test spend,” the recipient can be duped into believing a “program” is real and join the scammers-in-chief in helping the scam gather even more money.

    Payment processors named on the MaxHYIP site have been associated with a sea of scams, including “programs” such as AdSurfDaily, Zeek Rewards and Imperia Invest IBC. ASD was a $119 million Ponzi scheme. Zeek is alleged to have gathered nearly $900 million in a combined Ponzi- and pyramid scheme. Imperia is alleged to have gathered millions of dollars and to have targeted people with hearing impairments.

    Processors referenced on the site include PerfectMoney, EgoPay, Payeer, SolidTrustPay, HD-Money and others. Bitcoin also is referenced, as is an apparent virtual-currency wallet known as ASMoney.

    “Steeve Beaudin is not registered with the AMF and is therefore not authorized to solicit or advise Québec consumers for investment purposes,” AMF alleges.

    From the AMF statement (italics added):

    Caution when dealing with HYIPs

    HYIPs are investment programs in which money is invested for a given period (hour, day, week or month) at a high interest rate. It is a fraudulent scheme where investors are generally asked to entrust the management of their investments to so-called experienced managers and they receive interest according to the period chosen, which they can withdraw as they wish. In addition to being fraudulent, HYIPs are administered by companies which are generally off-shore, making it difficult for consumers to take legal action against them.

    HYIPs, which also often commissions to recruiters, tend to be straight-line Ponzi schemes with no “product” other than the purported investment “opportunity.” In recent years, however, more and more HYIPs may be using purported “products” such as VOIP software, cloud-computing software, “advertising” modules or auction “bids” to disguise the underlying investment elements and the underlying scam.

    If an HYIP scheme advertises a “product,” it typically promotes a lower daily return, perhaps between 1 percent a 3 percent. Even those purported returns are outrageous, however. On an annualized basis, Zeek Rewards, for instance, was touting returns that would have made Bernard Madoff look like a piker.

    HYIPs, whether they feature product claims or not, also offer returns that are unusually consistent. In the ASD and Zeek cases, it was alleged the operators simply manufactured the numbers because they knew that players who did hear a certain number would not play.

    The ASD and Zeek cases alleged the presence of co-conspirators. In such instances, the co-conspirators may be individuals who helped advance cover stories and fraudulent narratives. HYIP schemes also have been known to have silent partners and to launch reload schemes when the original scheme craters — AdSurfDaily to AdViewGlobal, for instance.

  • BULLETIN: Tata Group, Famous Business Concern In India, Says Fraudsters Trading On Its Name To Push HYIP Scheme; Purported Agriculture ‘Program’ Has Presence On The Ponzi Boards

    The purported TataAgro entity had a presence on the Ponzi boards and appears to have used trading screens to dupe the worldwide investing public. Image source: Google cache.
    The purported TataAgro entity had a presence on the Ponzi boards and appears to have used trading screens to dupe the worldwide investing public. Image source: Google cache.

    BULLETIN: (3rd Update 8:32 a.m. ET, Feb. 20 U.S.A.) The Tata Group, a global conglomerate based in India, says its name has been stolen by an HYIP Ponzi scheme. The fraud scheme is associated with a domain styled TataAgro.com and has a presence on the MoneyMakerGroup, TalkGold and DreamTeamMoney Ponzi forums, according to search results.

    Like the recently exposed WCM777 fraud scheme, the TataAgro scam claims a business presence in the British Virgin Islands. WCM777 also traded on the names of famous companies, including Siemens, the German conglomerate. Siemens issued statements warning the public about WCM777. Tata now has done the same thing with the purported TataAgro entity.

    The TataAgro website “claims that ‘Tata Agro Holding is a subsidiary of the globally known Tata group, [and is] one of the top 10 agro investment players in Asia’s financial market,'” the real Tata says. “It goes on to offer a wide range of investment plans with a monthly profitability of up to 100%.

    “Members of the public are hereby cautioned that the information provided on the website is absolutely false, misleading and intended to defraud innocent and unwary members of the public,” the real Tata says. “Neither Tata Sons nor any other Tata company has any connection whatsoever with the aforesaid Tata Agro Holding. Tata Sons is initiating appropriate action in the matter.”

    PonziTracker.com was among the first outlets to report the news of the Tata warning.

    The TataAgro site appears not to be loading.

    It is somewhat common for fraud schemes to try to steal the identities of major figures on the world financial stage. CONSOB, the Italian securities regulator, regularly publishes information on purported “opportunities” that adopt the names of legitimate firms to create confusion and fleece the masses.

    A post dated Dec. 3, 2013, at the MoneyMakerGroup Ponzi forum claims the purported TataAgro entity pays “1.9-3.1% daily for 15-90 days” and accepts Perfect Money, BitCoin, EgoPay and Qiwi.

    Meanwhile, a post dated Dec. 17 at the DreamTeamMoney Ponzi forum makes this claim (italics added):

    Tata Agro is an agricultural investment company founded in 2012 in British Virgin Islands. We are a subsidiary of transcontinental conglomerate Tata Group that has been established in India back in 1868 and now boasts the combined market capitalization of $96 bln.

    We have retained only the best things from a rich and long experience of our ancestor: the unique corporate culture, client-oriented and customized approach, and understanding of the market through retrospective analysis. Our fundamental aim is to help you grow your capital.

    We work with assets like barley, soya, soya oil and meat, corn, wheat, and livestock and currently operate in CME Group, TOCOM, and MGEX exchange houses.

    We are eager to offer you four investment plans with the daily ROI of 1.9% to 3.1% and investment term of 15 to 120 days. You can invest from 5 to 10,000 USD. Apart from that, we offer you a profitable referral program that lets you earn more and work side by side with your family and friends.

    A post dated Dec. 17 at the TalkGold Ponzi forum makes these claims (italics added):

    • Invest 5 to 100$ for 15 days and earn 1.9% ROI daily;
    • Invest 100 to 1000$ for 30 days and earn 2.3% ROI daily;
    • Invest 1000 to 5000$ for 60 days and earn 2.5% ROI daily;
    • Invest 5000 to 10,000$ for 120 days and earn 3.1% ROI daily.

    Collapsed fraud schemes such as Zeek Rewards, AdSurfDaily, Legisi, Pathway to Prosperity, Profitable Sunrise, Imperia Invest IBC and many more also had a presence on the Ponzi boards.

    The TelexFree “program” currently has a presence on the Ponzi boards.

  • SPECIAL REPORT: WCM777 Says Its U.S. Operations ‘Will Be On Hold Until Further Notice’ Because Its Securities Sales ‘Failed To Fully Comply With Laws And Regulations In United States’ — But Will The ‘WCM 777 Boston’ Band Play On In Houston? And What About The Highly Curious ‘Joseph Global Institute?’

    EDITOR’S NOTE: This story covers highly curious events associated with WCM777 and related entities or people. In this post you’ll find:

    • News on yesterday’s announcement by WCM that it had mothballed its U.S. operation that sells securities.
    • Questions about whether a WCM777 event scheduled over the next two days in Houston would occur or whether TelexFree, a company under investigation in Brazil amid pyramid-scheme allegations, could become the “opportunity” promoted at the Houston event.
    • News about confusion associated with a strange entity known as the Joseph Global Institute, purportedly operated by WCM777 executive Ming Xu. Ming Xu also is known as “Dr. Phil Ming Xu” and “Dr. Philip Ming.”  A website associated with the Joseph Global Institute appears to have preemptively declared the enterprise a university that confers graduate and postgraduate degrees, but is showing videos that appear to be owned by Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va. The Liberty videos have led to questions about whether Joseph Global potentially is duping visitors into believing the Liberty students who appear in the videos are Joseph Global Institute students or whether Joseph Global is a California branch of Liberty.
    • News about strange claims that WCM777 was “launching” an enterprise that actually launched long ago and became the center of an international media and diplomatic firestorm in 2012 over its reported ties to the controversial film, “The Innocence of Muslims.”

    ____________________________________

    UPDATED 6:56 P.M. ET (U.S.A.) WCM777 announced yesterday on its website that it was out of compliance with U.S. regulations and thus had put its U.S. securities operations “on hold.” Whether the purported “opportunity” whose affiliates claim can cause $14,000 to turn into $500,000 in 52 weeks had been notified by WCM777 to stop pitching U.S. prospects is far from clear.

    The news of the U.S. halt first was reported by BehindMLM.com.

    Left unsaid by WCM777 in its announcement was how the purported opportunity intends to address potential claims from untold scores of U.S. residents, including residents who attended pitchfests in hotels and churches and who might have purchased its securities. It is known from public records that Massachusetts purchasers were offered refunds. On Nov. 14, the state alleged WCM777 was selling unregistered securities.

    The WCM777 announcement did not address whether the “opportunity” had reported itself to the SEC. Nor did it say whether it had been contacted by the SEC. Until yesterday, the company never had directly addressed the Massachusetts allegations, hinting only that things had to change at WCM777.

    Another major concern: If WCM777 is selling unregistered securities, so is its stable of thousands of promoters, including those outside the United States who can solicit U.S. residents over the Internet. In theory, any U.S. -based promoter or international WCM777 promoter who continues to pitch the “opportunity” to U.S. residents could be charged under U.S. securities laws or the securities laws of the U.S. states. Whether WCM777 has the ability to block U.S. registrations is unclear.

    Will The WCM777 Band Play On In Houston?

    At the time of this PP Blog post, an apparent WCM777 affiliate site dubbed “Wcm777 Boston” on Facebook appeared not to know that WCM777 is closing shop in the United States. Nothing about WCM777’s announcement about its lack of compliance and the asserted halting of its U.S. securities operations appears on the Boston Facebook site. Indeed, at the time of this post, it was still promoting a WCM777 pitchfest set for tomorrow and Saturday at the  “Crown plaza northwest brookhollow.”

    “i just arrived in houston…. any question about the up coming meeting inbox me… dont lose this opportunity to learn about multi level marketing,” a post dated yesterday at the Boston Facebook site read. Meanwhile, a Nov. 1 post at the Boston Facebook site touting the purported daily payout of WCM777’s $1,999 plan reads, “U$32.00 DOLLARS EVERY DAY. NON STOP Daily Cash Flow NO Selling Required…coming soon, meeting in Houston, 11/22 and 11/23 . . .”

    Whether the WCM777 affiliate who runs the Wcm 777 Boston Facebook site will follow through with the plan to pitch WCM777 at the event — despite WCM777’s own confirmation it was operating illegally and was halting the sale of its own securities — is unclear. Continued sales of WCM777’s offerings could trigger even more scrutiny of the firm and its affiliates. Attendees at the Houston event who plowed any money into the WCM777 scheme all could become potential litigants against the Boston pitchman and WCM777 itself. If the Boston pitchman is aware or becomes aware of WCM777’s announcement before the Houston event and seeks to pitch something else, he may find himself addressing a confused and hostile crowd.

    The Wcm777 Boston Facebook site has associated itself with a street address in Boston, although the asserted phone number for the site uses an area code from a different region of Massachusetts. Whether the operator of the Facebook site had traveled from Boston (or elsewhere in Massachusetts or another state) to host the Houston event is unclear.

    Because the “Wcm777 Boston” Facebook site also references TelexFree in a Nov 10 post, attendees of the Houston event might find themselves getting pitched on that alleged pyramid scheme, too. TelexFree is under investigation in Brazil. The Nov. 10 post reads, “I do have a bunch guys in Houston area, my downlines on wcm777 and Telexfree, they will be more than happy to talk with you… Thank you again.” It is positioned alongside the logo of the National Football League.

    The Nov. 1 post that reproduces the NFL logo contends that two lucky prospects who attend the Nov. 22 and 23 WCM777 event in Houston will receive free tickets to “JACKSONVILLE VS HOUSTON.” The game is set for Sunday in Houston. Whether Ponzi or pyramid proceeds were used to pay for the tickets is unclear.

    wcm777boston

    Also unclear is precisely how the Boston affiliate is conducting business with WCM777 and recruits. Asked to provide payment proof, the Boston affiliate contended this in a Nov. 10 Facebook post: “I work with wcm for 3 Months and I had never need to transfers money my bank account because I use my credit to sign people up, if you not happy with screenshots unfortunately I don’t have deposits transfers to my bank account from wcm777…” (Unedited by PP Blog.)

    The post introduces the possibility that the Boston WCM affiliate somehow is paying recruits’ way into WCM777 and relying on reimbursement later, a common occurrence in HYIP scams. Whether that reimbursement would come from the prospects or the company is unclear. On Oct. 30, the PP Blog reported that a WCM777 affiliate on YouTube claimed, “I just had some[one] wire me from Mexico . . . $6,000 for three units. I’m signing up another person [in] [Florida?] for six units as well — excuse me, three units as well — another $6,000. And this is just going nuts.”

    The YouTube claim raises the specter that individual WCM777 promoters are accepting national and international wires from WCM777 recruits and somehow later transferring the money to WCM777. Such practices have been associated with cross-border securities scams, including the infamous Imperia Invest IBC scam in which the SEC accused a promoter of creating at least two business entities and using them to wire money to the Imperia scammers outside the United States.

    Making matters even stranger is the wording of WCM777’s announcement that it was halting its U.S. operations in the aftermath of a Nov. 14 consent order it entered into with the state of Massachusetts, which accused it of selling unregistered securities and benefiting from an affiliate’s targeting of the state’s Brazilian community. WCM777’s announcement is dated Nov. 20, six days after the order in Massachusetts. The announcement did not explain the delay in addressing the Massachusetts allegations. Nor did it explain why WCM777 hadn’t previously announced it was under investigation, only to claim later that “negotiations” went well — as though it were common knowledge that the firm was the subject of a securities investigation.

    Moreover, the timing suggests that WCM777 continued to benefit from the sale of unregistered securities across the United States even after the Nov. 14 order. Beyond that, it is far from clear whether WCM777 even has control over its U.S. affiliate base or affiliate bases elsewhere in the world. What is clear is that WCM777 is positioned as an opportunity for Christians to prosper.

    Here is WCM777’s Nov. 29 announcement in its entirety (italics added):

    WCM777 Response to Massachusetts Consent Order

    The negotiations between our lawyers and the Massachusetts’ Office of the Secretary went well. We have reached a settlement with Massachusetts.

    However, because the sale of securities failed to fully comply with laws and regulations in United States, our operations in the U.S. will be on hold until further notice; WCM Limited will continue operations. The company will implement new compliance procedures and register with the SEC before selling securities. Our customer service, IT support, and sales training are far from ideal. Especially in sales training, we don’t have a proper system set up. Some of the distributors have exaggerated the sales performance, which has led to complaints. The company system also needs to be further improved to ensure global legitimacy.

    Under the counsel of the lawyer, WCM777 has already registered in the state of California. We will soon re-enter the U.S. market. Also, WCM777 will hold the grand opening for Hong Kong office in Dubai this coming January. We will restore WCM777’s promise and move towards achieving our vision!

    Why WCM777 would hold a “grand opening” for a “Hong Kong” office in Dubai is unclear. Dubai is a city in the United Arab Emirates. Also unclear is how WCM777 intends to comply with securities regulations in all 50 U.S. states, plus federal territories and districts such as the District of Columbia (Washington, D.C.).

    Because virtually all developed nations regulate the sale of securities, WCM777 may face challenges across the globe. The scheme already is under investigation in Colombia, and there are reports that Peru has concerns.

    Affiliates, meanwhile, now have been officially blamed by WCM777 for exaggerating the offering and causing complaints, a classic corporate narrative in the HYIP world. While it is clearly true that affiliates have made outrageous claims that reflect their own lack of due diligence on the purported “opportunity,” it is equally true that WCM777 has advertised that a payment of $1,999 returns $3,200 in 100 days.

    Other Curious Issues

    An entity tied to WCM777’s purported operator Ming Xu — the Joseph Global Institute of Pasadena, Calif. — appears to be implying it operates a university that offers a “College of Engineering,” a “College of Health, ” a “College of Media Arts” and a “College of Business.” A website using the Joseph Global Institute name is accessible through a website that uses the famous name of “Harvard” as part of the URL.

    The site shows images of smiling, college-age students wearing graduation caps and holding what appear to be degrees. Other smiling students are shown studying in front of something that resembles a university hall. Visitors to the site are prompted to watch three videos, but there are no disclaimers or language that the action shown in the videos isn’t taking place at Joseph Global. All three videos appear to be owned by Liberty University, a large Christian university in Lynchburg, Va. Nothing on the Joseph Global Institute site, however, identifies the videos as belonging to Liberty and not to Joseph Global, a potential source of confusion.

    A text line below the videos on the Joseph Global site reads, “Want to see what we offer? Request a brochure here and get a tour of our school.”

    Why Joseph Global appears to be implying that it operates a university is unclear.

    Liberty University did not respond to a PP Blog request for comment about whether it was aware of the Joseph Global site.

    The strangest thing yet: A Nov. 18 Twitter post attributed to “Dr. Phil Ming Xu,” the purported operator of WCM777, says, “Launching The Way TV to transform nations & Joseph Global institute to train a group of Josephs to bless the world.”

    But The Way TV is something that launched years ago, through an entity known as Media for Christ. Media for Christ is based in Duarte, Calif. — and has a history that includes being at the center of an international firestorm.

    That firestorm centered on the inflammatory trailer of a film production known as “Innocence of Muslims,” which has been described as anti-Islamic and denigrating to the prophet Muhammad.

    Here’s how the Los Angeles Times put it on Sept. 13, 2012 (italics added):

    Joseph Nassralla Abdelmasih, the president of the Duarte-based charity Media for Christ, and Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, a convicted felon from Cerritos, emerged Thursday as forces behind “Innocence of Muslims.” An online trailer for the low-budget film incited violence in recent days across the Arab world.

    Nassralla later reportedly told the website AtlasShrugs2000 that he’d been duped by Nakoula into believing Nakoula was making a film about the persecution of Christians and he understood from Nakoula that the film was titled “Desert Warrior.”

    What was supposed to be a film about members of one faith persecuting members of another turned out to be something quite different: a film that portrayed Muhammad, a sacred figure, as a buffoon.

    Quoting Nassralla, AtlasShrugs2000 reported this on Sept. 17, 2012 (italics added):

    Nakoula needed a place to film. So I let him use my facility – that is all I did, and is the full extent of my involvement with this project. Nakoula used my facility for ten days. Media for Christ employees were given a vacation during that time, because Nakoula was using the facility and so there was no work for them. There was only one Media for Christ employee who remained, to answer phones for the ministry.

    I later discovered that Nakoula, using the name Sam Bacile, had gone to LA Films as producer of Desert Warrior, and used the name of my organization, Media for Christ, to obtain the permit he needed. He did so without my knowledge or permission.

    Now, the Twitter site under the name of WCM777 figure Dr. Phil Ming Xu is claiming it is “launching” The Way TV, something Nassralla already has launched. The Twitter site further claims the launch extends to the Joseph Global Institute, apparently the same entity that is advertising its operation of various “colleges” of higher education and showing website visitors videos of Liberty University students.

    A letter attributed to “Dr. Bruno Caporrimo” at the site references the city of Duarte, the home of The Way TV and Media for Christ, the Nassralla enterprises. Caporrimo is referred to elsewhere online as a former Mafia member who found God.

    Here is the opening of the letter, which is dated Nov. 16, 2013: (italics added):

    Dear Potential Student,

    My name is Dr. Bruno Caporrimo, Chancellor of Joseph Global Institute. At J.G.I. we have been training men and women for full time ministry, in a formal classroom experience as well as helping individuals gain a greater knowledge and understanding of the bible in order to fulfill the mandate of God’s calling in their lives. Our curriculum offers important bible doctrines in addition to the School’s emphasis on the practical side of ministry.

    It is our desire to see the world evangelized and we believe that if people are trained and equipped, from the standpoint of their local church and community, that this mandate from the Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth can be effectively realized and fulfilled in our generation. We currently have students from 50 different churches and from more than 10 nations around the world enrolled in Joseph Global Institute. J.G.I. has equipped and discipled into full and part time church and para-church ministry, over 5,000 students and they have embarked on their personal calling to fulfill the one great Commission of Matthew 28:19.

    Whether you plan to study through our International headquarters & ‘Global Student Network’™ in Duarte, California, or through our Distance Learning and online Correspondence Courses™ we are sure that we have the tools and resources to launch and elevate your personal and ministerial calling SO THAT YOU CAN bear much fruit for the Lord Jesus Christ and to operate in faith, diligence and integrity for God’s Kingdom.

    In a YouTube video dated Sept. 8, 2012, Caporrimo and Ming Xu appear. Ming Xu is described as the “dean” of the school and says, “If you want to get involved with us . . . we have bachelor degree[s], we have master degree[s.]” Caporrimo refers to Ming Xu as “Dr. Phil.”

    The URL cited for the Joseph Global Institute in the video — TheJoseph.org — now rotates to a parked page for Sedo, a domain seller.

    Another website associated with the Joseph Global Institute — JosephGlobalInstitute.com — shows some students holding books and others receiving degrees at a graduation ceremony. The JosephGlobalInstitute.com site uses the same logo as the website that uses Harvard’s name in its URL. The logos are similar in appearance to the logo of the actual Harvard University.

    Also see coverage on the MLM Skeptic Blog about a purported Ming Xu entity known as the Harvard Global Institute.

  • BULLETIN: ‘PerfectMoney,’ Fraud-Scheme Processor Purportedly Based In Panama, Says It Is Banning U.S. Customers

    breakingnews72BULLETIN: On the heels of the apparent shutdown of Costa Rica-based Liberty Reserve as part of an international money-laundering investigation, “PerfectMoney” says it is banning users from the United States. Perfect Money purportedly operates from Panama. (More below.)

    In an announcement dated today on its website, Perfect Money says that “due to changes in our policy we forbid new registrations from individuals or companies based in the United States of America. This includes US citizens residing overseas. If you fall under the above mentioned category, please do not register an account with us.”

    How PerfectMoney intends to treat existing U.S. users was not immediately clear, and the firm did not explain why it suddenly had changed its policy. The company is favored by criminals and HYIP scammers and has a history of advertising on behalf of purported Forex “opportunities” that have been the subjects of sweeping court actions in the United States.

    In January 2013, the Superintendency of the Securities Market of the Republic of Panama (SMV) warned that Perfect Money “has not been granted any kind of license by the SMV, nor has been authorized to carry on activities of intermediation, administration, or advisory in securities, financial instruments or forex, in or from the Republic of Panama, within the scope of the Securities Law.

    “PERFECT MONEY FINANCE CORP. does not have [its] own offices in Panama, the office and its P.O. Box claim in its website [deleted by PP Blog], belong to the companies Azuero Business Center, Inc. and Panama Net Buy, which provides online shopping services,” SMV said.

    In 2011, the PP Blog reported that an individual referenced as a Perfect Money contact person is referenced in federal court filings that tie money from the alleged EMG/Finanzas Forex fraud scheme to an international narcotics probe that led to the seizure of at least 59 bank accounts in the United States and the companion seizure of 294 bars of gold and at least seven luxury vehicles.

    PerfectMoney’s name also is referenced in case filings from the SEC’s 2010 fraud complaint against Imperia Invest IBC, a scam purportedly operating offshore. Deaf people lost millions of dollars to Imperia, the SEC said.

    A quick check today by the PPBlog showed dozens of HYIP sites that claim to accept PerfectMoney. Many of the same sites also claimed to accept LibertyReserve. How the “programs” — all of which advertise preposterous returns — will contend with the absence of LibertyReserve and the new restrictions imposed by PerfectMoney was not immediately clear.

    Liberty Reserve operator Arthur Budovsky Belanchuk is reported to be under arrest in Spain as part of a probe by authorities in Costa Rica and the United States.

    Based on U.S. court files and certain extrapolations, murky HYIPs may be raking in billions of dollars. In August 2012, the SEC alleged that the Zeek Rewards “program” gathered at least $600 million. Legisi, another HYIP scam, gathered at least $72 million before its 2008 collapse. Pathway To Prosperity appears to have churned at least $70 million prior to its 2010 collapse. The 2008 AdSurfDaily scheme gathered at least $119 million, according to federal prosecutors.

    Zeek and ASD — at least — did business with AlertPay and SolidTrustPay, processors based in Canada.

    In April 2013, the SEC alleged that a murky “program” known as Profitable Sunrise may have gathered tens of millions of dollars. Profitable Sunrise is the subject of regulatory actions or Investor Alerts in at least five countries: the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Italy and New Zealand.

    Profitable Sunrise pitchmen may not even have known for whom they were working to glean commissions, the SEC alleged.

    There may be hundreds or perhaps thousands of HYIP scams operating online at any given point in time. Some of them — like Profitable Sunrise — even advertise they accept bank wires. HYIP scams often have promoters in common, a situation that sets the stage for banks to come into possession of funds tainted by a revolving door of fraud schemes.

    In recent weeks, the PP Blog has reported on a number of reload scams aimed at victims of the Profitable Sunrise scheme. Virtually all of the schemes accepted PerfectMoney, LibertyReserve or both. Some also advertised they accepted SolidTrustPay and EgoPay.

    These schemes included BiwakoBank Limited, SuperWithdraw, Whos12, Fairy Funds, Roxili, OptiEarn, AVVGlobal, ProForexUnion, MajestiCrown and TelexFree.

  • URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: Liberty Reserve Payment Processor Offline Amid Reports Of Arrest Of Operator In Spain On Money-Laundering Charges

    breakingnews72URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: Costa Rica-based Liberty Reserve, a payment processor favored by HYIP scammers and other criminals, is offline — and there are reports that its operator is under arrest in Spain on money-laundering charges.

    “We lost Huge $$$,” a poster on the MoneyMakerGroup Ponzi forum complained. The poster’s forum signature was advertising AdHitProfits, with a pitch of “125% – Superfast Earning.” It also was promoting GoldAllianceFunds, with a pitch of “4.5% for 45 Business Days.”

    From The Tico Times, a newspaper published in Costa Rica (italics added):

    Arthur Budovsky Belanchuk, 39, on Friday was arrested in Spain as part of a money laundering investigation performed jointly by police agencies in the United States and Costa Rica.

    Costa Rican prosecutor José Pablo González said Budovsky, a Costa Rican citizen of Ukrainian origin, has been under investigation since 2011 for money laundering using a company he created in the country called Liberty Reserve.

    Local investigations began after a request from a prosecutor’s office in New York. On Friday, San José prosecutors conducted raids in Budovsky’s house and offices in Escazá, Santa Ana, southwest of San José, and in the province of Heredia, north of the capital.

    Budovsky’s businesses in Costa Rica apparently were financed by using money from child pornography websites and drug trafficking.

    Separately, BehindMLM.com is reporting that Liberty Reserve’s website is throwing a server error. The PP Blog confirmed the site will not load and that there appears to be no page-source information on the landing page.

    Recent scams that have used Liberty Reserve include JustBeenPaid/JSSTripler, “Expert Invest Group,” T2MoneyKlub (one of Ponzi schemer “Dave’s”) purported “programs,” Insectrio, Imperia Invest IBC and many more.

    Imperia scammed deaf people, the SEC said in 2010.

  • UPDATE: Sentencing For Legisi Pitchman Matthew John Gagnon Now Set For June 18

    Matthew J. Gagnon
    Matthew J. Gagnon

    Sentencing for Legisi HYIP Ponzi scheme pitchman Matthew John Gagnon has been rescheduled for June 18. Gagnon initially was scheduled to be sentenced yesterday, federal prosecutors said earlier this month.

    Gagnon pleaded guilty to not disclosing he’d been paid more than $1 million by Legisi and operator Gregory N. McKnight to tout the “program” online. McKnight is scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 6, federal prosecutors said.

    Legisi, a Ponzi-forum darling, collapsed in 2008. It triggered a civil probe by the SEC and a criminal investigation by the U.S. Secret Service. Michigan securities regulators also were involved in the probe.

    Other recent Ponzi-board “programs” that became the subjects of major investigations include Pathway To Prosperity, Imperia Invest IBC, AdSurfDaily, Zeek Rewards and Profitable Sunrise. All of the “programs” claimed absurd rates of return.

    The name of MoneyMakerGroup, a forum listed in U.S. court filings as a place from which Ponzi schemes are promoted, appears in an evidence exhibit in the Legisi case. Also included in the exhibit is Legisi’s bizarre Terms of Service, which required investors to avow they were not an “informant” for government agencies such as the CIA, FBI, SEC, “Her Majesty’s Police,” the Intelligence Services of Great Britain and the Serious Fraud Office, among others.

    Like McKnight, Gagnon also faces millions of dollars in civil judgments for hawking the Legisi scheme.

    In a plea agreement in the criminal case, Gagnon admitted he’d caused more than $7 million in losses to more than 50 Legisi investors.

    Delays in sentencing dates may be due in part to the difficulty the court-appointed receiver in the Legisi case has encountered in deposing a potential Legisi witness jailed in Alabama in a second scam.

  • UPDATE: Sentencing For Legisi HYIP’s Gregory McKnight Delayed Again; Sentencing For Pitchman Matthew J. Gagnon Also Moved

    Gregory N. McKnight
    Gregory N. McKnight

    Sentencing for Legisi HYIP Ponzi scheme purveyor Gregory N. McKnight has been delayed again — this time until Aug. 6 at 1:30 p.m. McKnight had been scheduled to be sentenced today in the Eastern District of Michigan. The postponement marks at least the fifth in the case.

    Legisi, which had a presence on infamous Ponzi forums such as TalkGold and MoneyMakerGroup and became the subject of both civil (SEC) and criminal (U.S. Secret Service) probes prior to its 2008 collapse, was a fraud that gathered about $72 million. McKnight pleaded guilty to wire fraud in February 2012. Prosecutors have asked for a sentence of 15 years, describing McKnight’s wordplay when trying to sanitize his HYIP scheme as “semantic obfuscation.”

    Meanwhile, sentencing for Legisi pitchman Matthew John Gagnon has been moved from today until May 21 at 1:30 p.m. Gagnon pleaded guilty to not disclosing he’d been paid more than $1 million by Legisi and McKnight to tout the “program” online. Gagnon pushed the “program” on Mazu.com.

    The name of MoneyMakerGroup appears in an evidence exhibit in the Legisi case. Also included in the exhibit is Legisi’s bizarre Terms of Service, which required investors to avow they were not an “informant” for government agencies such as the CIA, FBI, SEC, “Her Majesty’s Police,” the Intelligence Services of Great Britain and the Serious Fraud Office, among others.

    Other recent Ponzi-board “programs” that became the subjects of major investigations include Pathway To Prosperity, Imperia Invest IBC, AdSurfDaily, Zeek Rewards and Profitable Sunrise. All of the “programs” claimed absurd rates of return.

    The SEC said last month that Profitable Sunrise was operating from a “mail drop” in England and that pitchmen may not even have known for whom they were working when touting the “opportunity,” which may have gathered tens of millions of dollars.

    ASD was a $119 million Ponzi scheme. Zeek, according to the SEC, was a $600 million Ponzi- and pyramid fraud. Imperia targeted thousands of deaf investors and consumed more than $7 million. Pathway to Prosperity gathered about $70 million, according to court filings.

    ASD’s Andy Bowdoin — now serving a prison term of 78 months — also engaged in semantic obfuscation, prosecutors said. ASD, a massive Ponzi scheme,  purported to pay 1 percent a day. That’s about a third of the purported payout of the Profitable Sunrise “Long Haul” plan, which promoters said paid 2.7 percent a day.

    Like Legisi, Profitable Sunrise claimed to be in the “loan” business.

     

  • AP (VIA YAHOO NEWS): Zeek’s Paul Burks Says Participants At Fault For Losing Money In Alleged $600 Million Ponzi Scheme

    The Associated Press is reporting that Zeek Rewards operator Paul R. Burks claims that he is not at fault and that Zeek participants are to blame if they lost money.

    From the AP (via Yahoo News/italics added):

    “I never told anyone to invest more money than they could afford,” Burks snapped. “I didn’t tell them to do that. Never.”

    He said if they lost money, “it’s their fault. Not mine. Don’t blame me.”

    Read the full story.

    recommendedreading1Zeek rose in part through promotions on well-known Ponzi scheme forums such as TalkGold and MoneyMakerGroup. In August, the SEC alleged that Zeek was a $600 million Ponzi- and pyramid scheme operating from Lexington, N.C.  Court records suggest the SEC’s Zeek probe began at least in April 2012.

    Serial hucksters on the Ponzi boards often rationalize Ponzi train wrecks by claiming that no one advised participants to spend more than they could afford to lose.

    Convicted Ponzi schemer Dennis Bolze — one of the original so-called “mini-Madoffs” — tried a version of the “don’t invest more than you can afford to lose” rationalization in an unsuccessful bid to reduce his 27-year prison sentence for his brick-and-mortar scheme. A judge applied a sentencing enhancement in the Bolze case because senior citizens were among the victims.

    As the PP Blog reported on Jan. 12, 2012 (italics added):

    Bolze used a similar argument for a sentencing reduction, asserting that his victims invested only “discretionary money.”

    He further argued that age alone was  not sufficient to justify the enhancement “and that the present poor financial condition of his victims is not relevant to whether they were unusually vulnerable at the time they invested their money with him,” according to the 6th Circuit.

    Meanwhile, Bolze “denied that he forced anyone to invest” and claimed “that he did not know” certain investors “because his associate dealt with them.”

    The panel rejected each of those arguments.

    Burks, 66, has not been charged criminally. The SEC sued Burks and Zeek parent Rex Venture Group LLC last year.

    Ponzi-board hucksters have promoted numerous Internet-aided scams. AdSurfDaily, a $119 million Ponzi scheme opearting from Florida, had a presence on the boards. So did Legisi, a $72 million Ponzi scheme operating from Michigan. So did Pathway to Prosperity, a $70 million scam alleged to have penetrated 120 countries. So did Imperia Invest IBC, a shadowy entity that stole millions of dollars by targeting people with hearing impairments.

    The most recent Ponzi-board scam to make major news is Profitable Sunrise, another shadowy entity purportedly operated by “Roman Novak.” Profitable Sunrise purported to pay interest of 2.7 percent a day through its bizarrely named “Long Haul” plan targeted at Christians. Members were due a purported “Easter gift” on Monday, April Fool’s Day.

    The Profitable Sunrise website has been missing for more than two weeks. At least 34 U.S. states or provinces in Canada have issued Investor Alerts or cease-and-desist orders against Profitable Sunrise. The United Kingdom and New Zealand also have issued warnings.

    Research shows that Profitable Sunrise had members in common with ASD and Zeek.