U.S. Department of Justice

BULLETIN: TelexFree Trustee Stephen B. Darr today asked Judge Melvin S. Hoffman for an order that would compel TelexFree executive James Merrill to appear at a meeting of creditors at 11 a.m. on Feb. 10 at Mechanics Hall in Worcester, Mass. Darr also wants Hoffman to designate Merrill as TelexFree’s corporate representative, setting the stage for him […]

Unlike the boffo web-based schemes of TelexFree, Zeek Rewards and AdSurfDaily, the “Achieve Community” scam in which participants were told they’d glean returns of 700 percent did not perform well (relatively speaking) at the MLM Pyramid/Ponzi Scheme Box Office. Achieve’s haul topped out at about $6.8 million, with alleged unfunded liabilities in the range of $50 […]

UPDATED 12:32 P.M. EDT U.S.A. A component of the U.S. Department of Justice has informed U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Melvin S. Hoffman that it will object to fee applications filed by two firms assisting Stephen B. Darr, the court-appointed trustee in the TelexFree bankruptcy case in Massachusetts. In court filings yesterday, the office of U.S. Trustee […]

Forex traders at four multinational banks — Citicorp, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Barclays PLC and Royal Bank of Scotland plc — formed “The Cartel” and conspired to manipulate the prices of the U.S. dollar and the euro, the U.S. Department of Justice said today. All four banks have been charged criminally in an investigation that […]

EDITOR’S NOTE: Will MLM/network-marketing hucksters pushing UFunClub/UToken find any value in the story below? Ripple Labs Inc., based in San Francisco, “developed and sold virtual currency known as ‘XRP,’” but didn’t follow the law and “failed to establish and maintain an appropriate anti-money laundering program,” the U.S. Department of Justice said. If Ripple’s name sounds familiar, […]

Stephen B. Darr, senior managing director of Mesirow Financial Consulting LLC of Boston, has been appointed trustee in the TelexFree bankruptcy case. The appointment was made by William K. Harrington, the United States’ Trustee, based on the order of U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Melvin S. Hoffman. The office of the U.S. Trustee is the bankruptcy watchdog […]

UPDATED 5:06 P.M. EDT U.S.A. See Comments thread below for breaking news that the judge overseeing the TelexFree bankruptcy case in Massachusetts will appoint a trustee. First reported by the Wall Street Journal. Original story on separate TelexFree matter in Oregon is below . . . ** ______________________________ ** The staff of the Oregon Public […]

UPDATED 11:49 A.M. EDT U.S.A. Katia Wanzeler, the wife of accused TelexFree Ponzi-schemer and alleged fugitive Carlos Wanzeler, no longer is in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS). Whether she has concluded an appearance before a federal grand jury in Massachusetts is unclear. If the appearance occurred, it is possible it was delayed […]

The FBI and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security have established a website for individuals who believe they were defrauded by TelexFree, an alleged pyramid- and Ponzi scheme the Massachusetts Securities Division says gathered more than $1.2 billion. Here is a link to a statement by the FBI and DHS. The page includes a link […]

UPDATED 8:14 p.m. EDT U.S.A. James Merrill, the onetime president of TelexFree arrested and detained May 9 on wire-fraud conspiracy charges, was not freed at a bail hearing today and will remain in custody. “The judge took the matter under advisement,” the office of U.S. Attorney Carmen Ortiz of the District of Massachusetts said early […]

In case you missed the big news yesterday, TelexFree figures James Merrill and Carlos Wanzeler were charged criminally. Unofficially this brings the number of charged MLM HYIP “programs” (or clients) with links to MLM attorney Gerald Nehra to three in recent years. Nehra was an “expert witness” for AdSurfDaily in 2008. He testified that ASD, […]