PatrickPretty.com

Category: Alleged Ponzi Schemes

URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: Andy Bowdoin, AdSurfDaily Lose Appeal Of $65.8 Million Forfeiture Order; Panel Unanimously Upholds District Judge

BULLETIN: Andy Bowdoin and AdSurfDaily Inc. have lost their appeal of a January 2010 order by U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer that $65.8 million be forfeited to the government in the August 2008 civil Ponzi scheme case against Bowdoin’s assets. The U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia unanimously upheld Collyer, rejecting Bowdoin’s claims…

Mar 28, 2011
BULLETIN: SEC Alleges ‘Payday Loan’ Ponzi Scheme In Utah; Second Major Ponzi Case Brought In State In Two Days; Schemes Attracted Almost $75 Million

BULLETIN: The SEC has gone to federal court in Utah to halt what it described as a $47 million “payday loan” Ponzi scheme and offering fraud in which investors were lured by the prospect of “extraordinary returns” while the alleged operator diverted large sums of cash to himself and other business interests. The payday-loan Ponzi…

Mar 28, 2011
Florida Ponzi Property Of Accused Minnesota Fraudster Bo Beckman Will Drain Cash, Receiver Says; Home With 5 Bathrooms Is ‘Under Water’ And Should Be Beckman’s Problem To Solve

Accused Minnesota fraudster Jason Bo-Alan Beckman’s 5,097-sq.-ft.-home with five bedrooms, five bathrooms and a roomy garage of nearly 1,100 sq. ft. in Palm City, Fla., is seriously “under water” on its mortgage and thus creates a drain on assets that are best used to compensate victims, the court-appointed receiver has advised a federal judge. Receiver…

Mar 26, 2011
URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: German Cardona Soler, Figure Associated With International Forex Scam Pushed On TalkGold And MoneyMakerGroup, Arrested By Spanish National Police; Agency Alleges $300 Million Ponzi

BULLETIN: Spanish National Police have arrested German Cardona Soler in a case that alleges a spectacular Ponzi and fraud scheme involving more than $300 million. Two others also were arrested, and police “locked” 12 bank accounts. Although early details are unclear, it appears as though police have charged at least seven people in the alleged…

Mar 25, 2011
BULLETIN: Barry Minkow, Ponzi Fraudster Turned Pastor And Investigator After 7 Years In Slammer, Charged Criminally In Stock-Manipulation Scheme

Barry Minkow, who presided over a colossal Ponzi scheme as a young man, spent seven years in federal prison and emerged to become a church pastor and tell the world he no longer was a criminal, has been charged criminally in Florida in a stock-manipulation scheme. Minkow, 44, allegedly induced law enforcement to open a…

Mar 24, 2011
BULLETIN: Feds Charge Minneapolis Man Amid Suspicions He Used Loot From Trevor Cook Ponzi Scheme To Party And Gamble With Strippers While Victims Suffered

BULLETIN: Five days after Ponzi swindler Trevor Cook pleaded guilty to defrauding victims in an elaborate international scam that reduced investors to ruin, a Minneapolis man hid proceeds from the caper from law enforcement and the court-appointed receiver, federal prosecutors said. Victims of the Cook scheme — many of whom were people of faith —…

Mar 24, 2011
PRIMING THE PUMP: TalkGold, MoneyMakerGroup Publish String Of ‘I Got Paid’ Posts From Club Asteria Members; ‘It’s No Scam Now,’ Poster Declares

Two forums listed in federal court documents as places from which Ponzi schemes are promoted have published a series of “I got paid” posts from commentators who say they are members of Club Asteria (CA). The “I got paid” posts on MoneyMakerGroup and TalkGold appeared after CA members had complained publicly about not getting paid…

Mar 23, 2011
STATEMENT: Unusual Event At PP Blog

At approximately 1:05 a.m. (EDT) today, the PP Blog began to experience unusually high traffic volume and a highly unusual traffic pattern. The source of the traffic is unclear. What is clear is that IPs from all over the world suddenly began to pull “old” stories, meaning that the URLs being pulled existed in the…

Mar 22, 2011
URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: Federal Judge Refuses To Toss Indictment Against AdSurfDaily President Andy Bowdoin; Ruling May Deal Crushing Blow To ‘Autosurf’ Trade; ‘These Alleged Facts Smack Of An Investment,’ Court Says

BULLETIN: U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer has rejected AdSurfDaily President Andy Bowdoin’s sweeping claim that the indictment against him should be dismissed because ASD met none of the three prongs of the “Howey Test” under federal securities laws and a Supreme Court precedent that determines what constitutes an “investment contract.” Collyer’s refusal to dismiss the…

Mar 19, 2011
STATEMENT: PP Blog Takes ‘Prudent’ Measures In Response To Security Concerns

MARCH 18, 2011: The PP Blog today made certain prudent adjustments to its publishing well in response to security concerns. The adjustments center on how the Blog treats a tiny fraction of the thousands of pages in its archives, and what web browsers will display when readers visit those pages. The Blog will have no…

Mar 18, 2011
FLORIDA — AGAIN: CFTC Charges Sunshine State Couple Amid Spectacular Allegations They Posed As Forex Experts, Targeted Seniors And Handed Off More Than $22 Million To Man Who Was Trying To Cover Up Previous Ponzi Scheme

Gary and Brenda Martin of St. Augustine, Fla., posed as Forex dealers and experts, operated a website advertising their purported expertise, bragged about the talents of their unqualified sales “consultants” — and collected more than $22 million in an incredibly elaborate fraud scheme, the CFTC has charged. Neither of the Martins was registered with the…

Mar 18, 2011