PatrickPretty.com

Author: PatrickPretty.com

SEC Goes After $42 Million In Alleged Ill-Gotten Gains From Arthur Nadel Ponzi; Neil And Christopher Moody Accused Of A Reckless Lack Of Due Diligence And Misleading Investors

UPDATED 5:12 P.M. ET (U.S.A. JAN. 12) So, you want to mislead your clients about your role in your business,Â rely on the assertions of your business colleague and not perform thorough due diligence and double-check his claims that your investors are making enormous profits? Want to say later — after a Ponzi scheme collapses —…

Jan 11, 2010
Iranian-Americans Targeted In Beverly Hills Investment- And Affinty-Fraud Scheme, SEC Says; Debentures Program Allegedly Pitched On Persian-Language Radio Show

UPDATED 7:03 P.M. ET (U.S.A. JAN. 12) A Beverly Hills radio host pitched his fraud scheme in Persian and targeted Iranian-Americans in Greater Los Angeles, the SEC said today. Client funds were used to build a mansion for John Farahi, 52, and and his wife, Gissou Rastegar Farahi, 50, the agency said. Client funds also…

Jan 11, 2010
RECEIVER REPORT: Jet Ski Owned By Noobing Autosurf’s Parent Company Fetches $1,800 At Auction; Office Equipment Fetches $12,500

A court-appointed receiver has described the accounting records of Affiliate Strategies Inc. (ASI) as a mess, saying “an opinion on the accuracy of these records is not possible without an extensive audit that would require significant additional costs.” ASI is the parent company of the Noobing autosurf, which targeted deaf people in sales promotions. ASI…

Jan 11, 2010
Bowdoin ‘Most Interesting’ Figure In ASD Story; Prosecutors’ Court Wins Have Secured Control Over More Than 99 Percent Of Liquid Assets In Forfeiture Cases

EDITOR’S NOTE: This story is about the “Most Interesting ASD Figure” poll conducted by the PP Blog. It also includes data from court files that suggest federal prosecutors have won court battles that have secured control over more than 99 percent (99.2 percent) of the liquid assets available in the ASD/Golden Panda civil-forfeiture cases —…

Jan 11, 2010
‘Professor’ Patrick Moriarty, AdSurfDaily Mainstay, Pleads Guilty In Federal Tax Case; April Sentencing Date Set

AdSurfDaily mainstay “Professor” Patrick Moriarty has pleaded guilty in federal court in Missouri to filing a false tax return, federal prosecutors said. “The total tax loss admitted by [Moriarty] is $135,697,” prosecutors said. Prosecutors initially brought multiple tax-fraud counts against Moriarty, saying in March 2009 that he had filed false returns for the years 2002,…

Jan 10, 2010
SUNDAY NEWS AND NOTES: South Carolina Ponzi Victims Included Widows, Alzheimer’s Patients, Seniors And Amputee; ‘Shocks The Conscience,’ FINRA Says

EDITOR’S NOTE: These briefs are based on information from recent Ponzi or fraud schemes. As noted yesterday and previously, the United States has formed a Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. Cases such as the ones below are part of the reason why. SOUTH CAROLINA AND TENNESSEE: Among the more than 30 victims in the Oren…

Jan 10, 2010
FREE: PDF Handout On Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force; Document Compiles President’s Executive Order And Attorney General’s Speech In Florida

Dear Readers, UPDATED 11:50 A.M. ET (U.S.A.) There were reports yesterday that things have become so strange at Florida-based AdSurfDaily that a convicted sex offender has emerged as a sort of PR voice for the company. ASD is implicated by the Department of Justice in a $100 million Ponzi scheme, amid allegations of wire fraud,…

Jan 9, 2010
SHOCKING: SEC Says Illinois Investment Adviser And Movie Producer Raided Account Of 96-Year-Old Nursing Home Patient With Dementia; Steve Salutric Ponzi Diverted $321,000 To His Church

A federal judge has frozen the assets of Illinois investment adviser Steve Salutric in a Ponzi scheme case in which the allegations are shocking. Salutric, 51, a church treasurer who took a stab at the fim business and co-produced the 2005 movie “Madison” starring Jim Caviezel and Bruce Dern, raided the account of a 96-year-old…

Jan 8, 2010
SEC: Man Switches Company Name For Offering, Buys Autodialer And Database For 17K, Targets Wealthy Investors, Racks Up $1.4 Million Before Scheme Collapses

UPDATED 6:15 P.M. ET (U.S.A.) A California man ordered by five states to cease and desist from selling unregistered securities started using a different corporate name, bought an autodialer and database with the names of wealthy investors for $17,737 and used it for at least six months to fleece clients before the scheme collapsed in…

Jan 8, 2010
KA-BOOM! SEC Files Emergency Action In Alleged Richard Elkinson ‘Uniform’ Ponzi Scheme; U.S. Attorney General Warns Fraudsters, ‘You Are Writing Your Ticket To Jail’

Ka-boom! A federal judge has frozen the assets of alleged Ponzi schemer Richard Elkinson, accused of fleecing investors in Massachusetts by telling them he brokered deals for government uniforms and uniforms worn by Olympic athletes. Meanwhile, the attorney general of the United States ventured to Florida today and gave a dramatic speech at the Forum…

Jan 8, 2010
News, Notes And Updates: Jailed And Disbarred, Former Massachusetts Attorney Who Fleeced 95-Year-Old Client Arrested On New Charges

EDITOR’S NOTE: This post distills recent news and development on the fraud and Ponzi fronts. CHARGED: Six people — including a disbarred attorney already in prison — have been charged in Massacuusetts in an elaborate mortgage-fraud scheme. Bruce Namenson, the former lawyer, was charged with 18 counts of of larceny for arranging bogus loan closings,…

Jan 8, 2010