PatrickPretty.com

Category: Writing And Branding

  • Bellevue, Neb: Purported ‘Sovereign Citizen’ Shows Up At Police Headquarters With Sword, Later Gets Tasered

    James Casale. From Bellevue (Neb.) police, via Facebook.
    James Casale. From Bellevue (Neb.) police, via Facebook.

    James Casale, 36, a purported “sovereign citizen,” allegedly showed up on New Year’s Eve wearing a “Guy Fawkes” mask and carrying a sword at police headquarters in Bellevue, Neb.

    Bellevue police posted a photo of the encounter on Facebook.

    Casale wasn’t arrested at headquarters, police said. Rather, he was arrested later at the home of his ex-wife after showing up there with the sword.

    “Bellevue Police were dispatched to investigate a call of a man armed with a belt and a Katana Sword in the yard of his ex-wife,” police said.  “Upon Officers arrival, Casale grabbed the handle of the Katana Sword. Officers ordered Casale to drop the weapon to the ground, however he continually refused. Officers then utilized a taser to stop the actions of Casale and he was taken into custody. There were no injuries during this incident. Casale was transported to Nebraska Medicine in Bellevue for medical attention. Charges are pending against Casale for the offenses of Terroristic Threats, Trespassing, Obstructing Police, Resisting Arrest, and Use of a Weapon to Commit a Felony.”

    From the Facebook post by police (italics added):

    James Casale is known to the Bellevue Police Department, as well as, other Sarpy County Law Enforcement Agencies. He is at times a self-proclaimed sovereign citizen and routinely shows up on police calls or in areas where Officers are present and launches his drone. Casale is also known to attend Bellevue City Council meetings in the past.

    “[T]he revolution starts tomorrow,” Casale allegedly told police.




  • BULLETIN: Terrorist-Inspired Attack In Rochester, N.Y., Thwarted, FBI Says

    breakingnews725BULLETIN: (2nd Update 1:58 p.m. ET U.S.A.) The FBI has arrested a man from Rochester, N.Y., saying he planned to show his support for ISIS by carrying out a machete attack today at a bar/restaurant in the Rochester area. ISIS is a terrorist group also known as ISIL.

    Today is New Year’s Eve. Bars and restaurants will be packed, a circumstance that suggests the suspect wanted to maximize the terror he would create.

    On Dec. 29, Emanuel L. Lutchman, 25, went shopping at a Walmart store on Hudson Ave. in Rochester to acquire the equipment needed for the bloody attack, including two black ski masks, zip-ties, two knives, a machete, duct tape, ammonia and latex gloves, according to a chilling FBI affidavit that outlined the plan.

    Lutchman’s shopping companion, however, was an FBI informant, according to the affidavit.

    Prior to his arrest yesterday, according to the affidavit, Lutchman swore his allegiance on video to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and claimed credit for the attack.

    “The FBI thwarted Emanuel Lutchman’s intent to kill civilians on New Year’s Eve,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Adam S. Cohen of the Buffalo division.  “The FBI remains concerned about people overseas who use the Internet to inspire people in the United States to commit acts of violence where they live.”

    Lutchman allegedly told an FBI informant that he’d been in contact with an “Overseas Individual” who’d identified himself as an ISIS “brother.” This individual, according to the affidavit, allegedly told  Lutchman that being with ISIS was  “dream come true.”

    Lutchman, in December, “expressed his hatred for everything in America” and the supposed infidels here and his desire to go to Syria to join ISIS, according to the affidavit.

    Also in December, Lutchman talked about “doing assassinations” and using “firearms” and a “pressure-cooker bomb,” according to the affidavit.

    “I am ready to lose my family” to live under the ISIS caliphate, Lutchman allegedly said. At one point, according to the affidavit, he pointed out the bar/restaurant as a potential attack target and said “he knew someone with a machete and that his wife has a dagger.”

    The zip-ties were needed in case they “kidnap[ped] somebody,” Lutchman allegedly said.

    After the Walmart shopping trip, Lutchman allegedly said, “It’s going to get real after this. “It’s just you, me and the Lord. We gotta do this, we gotta do this precise.”

    Continuing, Lutchman allegedly said, “If we grab somebody, they can’t live. They may identify the vehicle. They can’t live.”

    He has been charged with attempting to provide material support to ISIS.

    “This New Year’s Eve prosecution underscores the threat of ISIL even in upstate New York but demonstrates our determination to immediately stop any who would cause harm in its name,” said U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul Jr. of the Western District of New York.

    Rochester, in the western section of the state, has a population of about 210,000 and is New York’s third-largest city, behind New York City and Buffalo. Rochester is about the same size as San Bernardino, Calif., which was subjected to a terrorist  attack on Dec. 2 that killed 14 people.

    Read the statement on the Lutchman arrest by the Justice Department.

    Read the FBI affidavit.

  • BBC Hit With New Year’s Eve DDoS Attack

    Websites of the BBC, including those with news content, were rendered unavailable by a New Year’s Eve DDoS attack, the venerable company reported. The outage lasted on the order of three hours. Service has been restored.

    From BBC News (italics added):

    All the BBC’s websites were unavailable early on Thursday morning because of a large web attack.

    The problems began about 0700 GMT and meant visitors to the site saw an error message rather than webpages.




  • An Incredibly Toxic Series Of HYIP Swindles — Everything From Bitcoin-Themed Scams To Purported Real-Estate Ventures That Claim To Aid Victims Of Terrorism

    FundComing.com says it is a real-estate venture that pays 5,000 percent after three days and had helped victims of terrorism in Syria, one of the homes of ISIS,
    FundComing.com says it is a real-estate venture that pays 5,000 percent after three days and had helped victims of terrorism in Syria, one of the homes of ISIS,

    Bitcoinest.net, a site that covers cryptocurrency news, reported today that “DoubleCloud.pw Is Another Bitcoin HYIP Ponzi Scheme.”

    The “pw” extension stands for Palau, an island country in the Western Pacific. But the extension has been rebranded as “Professional Web,” according to Wikipedia. The user-created encyclopedia says Symantec, the security company, reported in 2013 a lot of “pw” spam.

    The PP Blog today visited the DoubleCloud.pw website and observed an offer that advertises a “350% profit after 48 hours.” The Blog further visited the “Rules” page at the domain, which may be operating from Russia.

    While at the domain, we copied this “rules” passage — “is not available to the general public and is opened only to the qualified members” — and pasted it into Google. Turns out the phrase appears on many, many sites, meaning it is part of a script in which the operators simply swap in the name of their particular swindle.

    Bernard Madoff became infamous as a Ponzi schemer who tried to instill a sense of exclusivity in his investors. These HYIP scams are doing the same thing.

    Perhaps of particular concern is that the phrase is on many sites that do not have a Bitcoin theme, meaning the kit is being used by scammers across the HYIP sphere.

    One of them is known as FundComing.com, a purported real-estate venture that promises 5,000 percent after three days.

    A note on the site clams as such (italics added):

    “Today, we received a letter of thanks from investors [sic]. The investor comes from Syria, a 7 years [sic] old boy whose husband [sic] died from a terrorist attack. After the consent of her consent [sic], we put the letter of gratitude, the mood to share to you.”

    Syria, of course, is one of the strongholds of ISIS. Based on the purported testimonial, the FundComing “real estate” website appears to be positioning itself as a safe venture for families shattered by terrorists. Meanwhile, it is using the same “rules” as DoubleCloud.pw, the purported Bitcoin earnings “program.”

    Separately, a site styled Bond-dot.com is using the same “rules.” It says it is involved in both cryptocurrency and Forex from a purported base in “London (England).” It appears to be soliciting sums from $10 to $5,000, making it both a micro- and a macroscam.

    Other sites with virtually the same “rules” — and this is just the tip of the iceberg:

    • RazInvest.com
    • NextPayMoney.com
    • NanoIncomes.com
    • HYIPFirst.com
    • NextHourPay.com
    From the second page of Google search results for "
    From the second page of Google search results for “is not available to the general public and is opened only to the qualified members.”




     

  • IN MEMORY: Paul Schlegel, 1963-2015

    Paul Schlegel, a St. Louis-based musician and composer and longtime member of the antiscam community, has died. He was 52.

    Word of Paul’s Dec. 7 passing was received from Lynn Edgington of Eagle Research Associates, via a post today at the RealScam.com antiscam forum.

    Paul had assisted Eagle for years in its dual mission of educating the public about scams and working proactively with law enforcement. Paul also supplied administrative support to RealScam.

    “He truly had a servant’s heart,” RealScam administrator Soapboxmom wrote today.

    The PP Blog fondly remembers Paul for his support during a bizarre and concerning hectoring campaign orchestrated here by a cyberstalker who called himself “Almighty Joseph (the risen)” in 2009. The Blog was told it would be “scrambling to put out fires.”

    The stalker was a supporter of the AdViewGlobal Ponzi scheme, later tied by federal prosecutors to the AdSurfDaily Ponzi scheme, a $119 million caper that affected thousands and thousands of people globally.

    Paul also supported the Blog during the crippling DDoS attacks here in 2010. RealScam.com later would be targeted.

    Paul supported the Blog’s efforts to report on a bid by a purported Zeek Rewards’ consultant to disable the HubPage of K. Chang of the MLM Skeptic. The page eventually returned. Zeek was a combined Ponzi- and pyramid scheme that gathered more than $850 million, according to the SEC.

    Zeek affected hundreds of thousands of people.

    In 2014, RealScam and the PP Blog again were targeted in a bizarre hectoring campaign. So was Quatloos. Paul’s support never wavered.

    It is the nature of Ponzi schemes to bring out “blind-faith craziness” in some otherwise normal people, Paul once observed.

    Here is Paul Schlegel’s obituary. He is described as a loving family man whose life was filled with music from his heart.

    We’d add to these loving words that Paul helped lots of people in the development of their online knowledge base about scams. He was there day after day to help his fellow human beings avoid the pain of losses, so that the music could continue to play in their lives.

  • BULLETIN: ‘TeamVinh,’ A Ponzi-Board ‘Program,’ Charged By SEC

    teamvinhlogoBULLETIN: (8th Update 3:34 p.m. ET U.SA.) The SEC has gone to federal court in Minnesota, alleging that an enterprise known as “TeamVinh” that pushed something called “VPAKs” was operating a securities-fraud scheme targeted at MLMers.

    TeamVinh, which allegedly recruited more than 5,600 participants,  has a presence on the Ponzi boards, including MoneyMakerGroup and TalkGold. Recent chatter suggests the scheme may have been making selective payouts, a classic maneuver in HYIP Ponzi land. The scheme eventually morphed into a “purported commodities trading platform,” the SEC said.

    Morphing into a new scheme is another classic form of Ponzi fraud.

    “Defendants claimed that TeamVinh members are able to obtain the placement of individuals in their downline salesforce through purchasing what TeamVinh refers to as ‘VPAKs,’” the SEC charged. “Each VPAK is supposed to represent another individual who signed up for TeamVinh, and TeamVinh promises to ‘fulfill’ the VPAK by placing the person represented by the VPAK in the member’s downline at the third-party MLM company and in the member’s TeamVinh account. Defendants claim that, through the VPAKs, TeamVinh would ‘continuously SPILL in NEW Active Paying Members into [the existing member’s] Downline.’ Members could also earn funds by referring additional individuals to TeamVinh. ”

    Claims of tremendous spillover are common in MLM schemes.

    Charged were TeamVinh.com LLC and alleged operator Vu H. Le, also known as Vinh H. Le.

    Le, 39, lives in Minnesota and was convicted of forgery in Wisconsin in 1995. He spent two years in prison, the SEC said.

    By 2007, the SEC charged, “the States of Wisconsin and Minnesota barred Le from offering or selling securities in those states based on Le’s involvement in a real estate scam.”

    Le raised more than $3 million through TeamVinh, spending $2 million of it at “a single casino” in Las Vegas, the SEC charged. He allegedly also spent investor money at other casinos.

    Promises of “passive income” were part of the TeamVinh scheme, the SEC alleged. Earlier Ponzi-board scams such as Zeek Rewards and TelexFree made similar claims. So did “The Achieve Community.”

    Ponzi-board posts suggest TeamVinh was using a curious (and lengthy) acronym to sanitize the scheme: ACCESS WEW. This apparently stands for “A Crazily Cost Effective Self-Sustainable Wealth the Easier Way” system.

    A higher-priced scheme within the overall scheme was known as VET, which stood for “Vinh’s Elite Team,” the SEC said.

    The VET membership costs ranged “from $3,995 to $24,995.”

    TeamVinh buy-ins for as low as $40 also allegedly were offered, potentially making the business both a microscheme and a macroscheme.

    With TeamVinh already in trouble in 2014, “Le solicited additional investments from TeamVinh members in what he referred to as the ‘Platform.’ As new member and investor proceeds began to dwindle, Le told existing members and investors that he needed $200,000 to finalize TeamVinh’s launch of VodeOx,” the SEC charged. “Le claimed that an investor had committed the $200,000, but the investor’s bank would not clear the funds.”

    VodeOx purportedly was “TeamVinh’s own MLM company,” after TeamVinh earlier had operated as an apparent affiliate of other MLM firms.

    Read the SEC statement on TeamVinh. Read the complaint.




  • U.S. Tweaks National Terrorism Advisory System, Issues First ‘Bulletin’

    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has issued a terror “Bulletin.” The issuance coincides with an update to the National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS).

    A “Bulletin” describes “general developments or trends regarding threats of terrorism,” DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson said today.

    Two other advisory levels exist:

    An “Elevated Alert” warns “of a credible terrorism threat against the United States.”

    An “Imminent Alert,” meanwhile, warns “of a credible, specific and impending terrorism threat against the United States,” DHS says.

    The Bulletin issued today expires June 16, 2016, and reads as such (italics added):

    We are in a new phase in the global threat environment, which has implications on the homeland.  Particularly with the rise in use by terrorist groups of  the Internet to inspire and recruit, we are concerned about the “self-radicalized” actor(s) who could strike with little or no notice. Recent attacks and attempted attacks internationally and in the homeland warrant increased security, as well as increased public vigilance and awareness.

    • Though we know of no intelligence that is both specific and credible at this time of a plot by terrorist organizations to attack the homeland, the reality is terrorist-inspired individuals have conducted, or attempted to conduct, attacks in the United States this year.
    • DHS is especially concerned that terrorist-inspired individuals and homegrown violent extremists may be encouraged or inspired to target public events or places.
    • As we saw in the recent attacks in San Bernardino and Paris, terrorists will consider a diverse and wide selection of targets for attacks.
    • In the current environment, DHS is also concerned about threats and violence directed at particular communities and individuals across the country, based on perceived religion, ethnicity, or nationality.

    Here’s how Johnson began his remarks today (italics added):

    “In the period of weeks following the terrorist attacks in Paris on November 13 and the terrorist attack in San Bernardino on December 2, officials of Homeland Security, the FBI, the intelligence community, state and local law enforcement and homeland security officials have been in a heightened state of readiness to protect our homeland. People are anxious now. They should know, they need to know what their government is doing to protect our homeland.”

    Read his full statement.

  • DEVELOPING STORY: Proposed Settlement Agreement With Zeek Receiver May Wipe Out MLM Attorneys And Law Firm

    From a court filing dated Dec. 11, 2015. Red highlight by PP Blog.
    From a court filing dated Dec. 11, 2015. Red highlight by PP Blog.

    DEVELOPING STORY: (5th Update 8:18 p.m. ET U.S.A.) MLM attorneys Gerald Nehra and Richard Waak will sign a confession of judgment for a whopping $100 million and acknowledge that Zeek parent Rex Venture Group “in fact operated an unlawful Ponzi and pyramid scheme” under the terms of a settlement agreement with Zeek Rewards’ receiver Kenneth D. Bell, according to new court filings.

    The news comes as Nehra and Waak also are being pursued by class-action attorneys for alleged misdeeds involving the TelexFree MLM scheme broken up by the Massachusetts Securities Division, the SEC and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in 2014.

    A judge must approve the settlement proposal with Bell in which the MLM lawyers contend “that they acted in good faith as legal counsel,” but now “acknowledge and agree that, based on their current knowledge, during the period they served as counsel RVG in fact operated an unlawful Ponzi an pyramid scheme involving an unregistered investment contract that caused hundreds of millions of dollars in losses to innocent victims of the scheme,” according to filings from Bell.

    In 2008, Nehra argued that AdSurfDaily — a $119 million Ponzi scheme — was not a Ponzi scheme. His own client, Andy Bowdoin, later disagreed. Nehra then became involved in both Zeek, a scheme that allegedly gathered more than $850 million, and TelexFree, which allegedly created more than $3 billion in bogus economic activity.

    All three “programs” used similar business models. The cascading fraud totals have been a source of considerable concern.

    The settlement proposal with Bell hints the MLM attorneys, who acknowledge no liability to the receiver, already may be wiped out in that it calls for a payment of $100,000, a small sum compared with the confession of judgment for $100 million.

    In fact, according to the agreement, the MLM lawyers have submitted a sworn financial statement and the $100,000 figure represents “to the extent that it can be accomplished, the full payment of all the Nehra and Waak’s funds and assets available to satisfy the agreed judgment.”

    “The Receiver believes the financial settlement, Confession of Judgment in the amount of $100 million and the acknowledgement of the existence of the Ponzi and pyramid scheme reached as part of the negotiation process is the best outcome for the Receivership and that even with the expenditure of additional funds to obtain a judgment there is not a likelihood of a materially increased recovery for the eventual distribution to the Zeek victims.” Bell wrote.

    Bell sued Nehra and Waak in September, alleging that they “encouraged investors to participate in the scheme by knowingly allowing their names to be used in providing a false façade of legality and legitimacy and gave improper legal advice that allowed the scheme to continue far longer than it would have without the Defendants’ support. Nehra and Waak’s improper and negligent actions, which breached their fiduciary duties to RVG and assisted RVG’s Insiders to breach their fiduciary duties, caused significant damage to RVG.”

    The PP Blog reported last month that a settlement was possible.

    Bell advised Senior U.S. District Judge Graham C. Mullen today that the proposed settlement sum of $100,000 was “based on the defendants’ financial condition.”

    NOTE: Our thanks to the ASD Updates Blog.




  • URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: Judge Orders U.S. Marshals To Arrest Zeek Figure Darryle Douglas

    breakingnews725URGENT >> BULLETIN >> MOVING: (3rd Update 6:25 p.m. ET U.S..) Senior U.S. District Judge Graham C. Mullen of the Western District of North Carolina has ordered the U.S. Marshals Service to arrest alleged Zeek Rewards’ insider Darryle Douglas for civil contempt of court.

    The order was issued yesterday and included a directive for marshals to execute an arrest warrant and jail Douglas, a Californian. It was not immediately clear whether he has been taken into custody.

    As the PP Blog reported on July 13, Douglas may be associated with an emerging scheme known as Auction Attics. Zeek receiver Kenneth D. Bell initially declined to comment on the nascent “program,” which almost certainly was aimed at former Zeekers and others.

    But Bell did reference Auction Attics in an Aug. 24 court filing, according to BehindMLM.com.

    After Mullen ordered Douglas to appear at a Dec. 3 hearing in North Carolina, Douglas failed to show, according to the order.

    At the same time, Douglas has not complied with a Sept. 15 order that directed him to turn over the Zeek Rewards’ database, to produce certain financial records and to submit to a deposition by Bell, according to the order.

    And, according to the order, Douglas has been obstructing the receiver. From the order (italics added):

    Mr. Douglas failed to appear for the show-cause hearing. The Court took evidence at the hearing from the Receiver and from counsel for Mr. Douglas and is satisfied that Mr. Douglas received notice of the hearing well in advance of the hearing date. The Court finds that Mr. Douglas received notice of the September 15 Order and has violated that Order. In addition, the Court finds that the Receivership has suffered and will continue to suffer harm because of Mr. Douglas’ violation of the Order. Mr. Douglas was previously found liable for more than $2 million to the Receivership in the form of fraudulent transfers and prejudgment interest, and under the Agreed Order in this matter, these are Receivership Assets belonging to the Receivership Estate.

    Mr. Douglas’s failure to return the database and these Receivership Assets not only harm the Receivership, but they also violate the Agreed Order in obstructing the Receiver’s efforts.

    NOTE: Our thanks to the ASD Updates Blog.




  • Watch The Trailer For ‘Madoff’ And Think About How You Could Have Avoided Schemes Such As Zeek And TelexFree

    Bernard Madoff, played by Richard Dreyfuss, tells investors "Look, it's a closed fund" in the ABC miniseries. Ponzi schemes often trade on suggestions of exclusivity.
    Bernard Madoff, played by Richard Dreyfuss, tells investors “Look, it’s a closed fund” in the ABC miniseries. Ponzi schemes often trade on suggestions of exclusivity.

    ABC has made available the first trailer for “Madoff,” a network miniseries debuting Feb. 3, 2016. Richard Dreyfuss plays the notorious Ponzi schemer, with Blythe Danner starring as Ruth Madoff.

    Bernard Madoff’s name first appeared on the PP Blog nearly seven years ago, on Dec. 13, 2008. It has appeared numerous times since then.

    Says Dreyfuss, as Madoff, in the trailer: “You want to know how to get people to trust you with their money? I’ll tell you right now: You present it as an exclusive thing.”

    Any number of the “programs” we have covered tried to sell Madoff-like exclusivity. One of them was Zeek Rewards, an alleged MLM fraud involving more than $850 million taken down by the SEC in 2012.

    Zeek Rewards, according to the SEC, called itself a “private, invitation-only, affiliate advertising division” for Zeekler, a penny-auction “opportunity.”

    Of course, the interest rate Zeek promised made Madoff look like an amateur.

    As the PP Blog reported on June 10, 2012, a couple of months prior to the SEC’s Zeek action (italics added):

    When Zeek’s story is compared to the tale of Madoff’s relatively modest (compared to Zeek) but unusually consistent returns of around 10 percent a year, Zeek is outperforming the notorious Ponzi swindler by a factor on the order of 30 to one. Zeek, though, insists it is not offering an investment. It also preemptively denies it is a “pyramid scheme” and plants the seed it will terminate any affiliate who suggests Zeek is offering an investment program.

    Lessons flowing from Madoff continue to go unheeded — things such as suggestions of exclusivity and unusually consistent returns.

    But with HYIPs, the danger signs may be even clearer: preposterous interest rates that dwarf Madoff’s “returns,” a presence of a scheme on the Ponzi boards such as TalkGold and MoneyMakerGroup, menacing behavior by a company or its affiliates, cult-like qualities (such as allegedly existed at TelexFree), bizarre antigovernment rhetoric suggesting the presence of “sovereign citizens” or political extremists.

    One of the classic refrains is that “it can’t be a scam because the company is registered.”

    TelexFree, which allegedly generated $3 billion in economic activity, was “registered.”

    So was Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC.

    As was the case at Zeek, the TelexFree interest rate dwarfed that of Madoff. From the SEC’s 2014 TelexFree complaint filed years after Madoff made “Ponzi” household word in 2008 (italics added):

    One version of the marketing presentation on the company website contained slides indicating that an AdCentral promoter could clear $2,296 per year on a $289 investment, that an Ad Central Family promoter could clear $11,599 per year on a $1,375 investment, and that a Team Builder promoter could receive as much as $39,600 per year.

    The “Madoff” trailer is below. It includes lots of lessons for the mind and soul in just one minute — and it’s not just about making people think they are becoming members of an exclusive club. The con man serving 150 years in federal prison also made appeals to naked greed.

    Your Ponzi-board sponsor may be doing the same thing to you right now.




  • BULLETIN: 2 Arrested In Alleged ‘Banners Broker’ Pyramid Scheme

    breakingnews725BULLETIN: (14th Update 3:39 p.m. ET U.S.A.) Toronto police have arrested “Banners Broker” figures Christopher George Smith of Toronto and Rajiv Dixit of Vancouver.

    Both suspects are 45 and are scheduled to make a court appearance today, police said. The scheme allegedly raised $93 million (U.S.).

    They have been charged with Defrauding the Public of Over $5000, Possession of the Proceeds of Crime, Laundering the Proceeds of Crime, Operating a Pyramid-Selling Scheme and Making False or Misleading Representations under the Competition Act, police said.

    “[T]here are 1000’s of victims worldwide in Banners Brokers pyramid scheme,” police said on Twitter. The remark was attributed to Det. Sgt. Ian Nichol of the Toronto Police Mass Marketing Section.

    And, the department Tweeted, the agency and mass-marketing fraud investigators from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police “worked for 2yrs full time on Banners Brokers pyramid scheme investigation.”

    Also assisting in the cross-border probe were the Competition Bureau of Canada, the Ministry of Government and Consumer Services, the Ministry of Finance, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, FINTRAC and the Canada Revenue Agency, police said.

    FINTRAC stands for the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada.

    “[T]he program’s existence was entirely dependent upon the fee-based entry of new members and little or no real product or service was provided,” police said.

    Banners Broker, a purported “advertising” program similar to the AdSurfDaily Ponzi scheme broken up by the U.S Secret Service in 2008 and a current “program” known as MyAdvertisingPays or MAPS, previously has been described as a criminal enterprise.

    As the PP Blog reported last year, Banners Broker, like similar schemes, appeared to be trying to intimidate members.

    Read the statement by the Toronto Police Service on Banners Broker and the arrests of Smith and Dixit.

    In 2013, the PP Blog received bizarre spam from apparent Banners Broker supporters unhappy about the Blog’s coverage of the “program.”

    The PP Blog’s first reference to Banners Broker was published on June 17, 2012, when the Blog reported that a site that claimed it sold “customers” to Zeek Rewards members also was pushing traffic to Banners Broker and JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid, the bizarre, 730-percent-a-year “program” purportedly operated by Frederick Mann.

    Mann also was a pitchman for the AdSurfDaily Ponzi scheme. JSS/JBP, which later morphed into a “program” known as ProfitClicking, may have ties to the sovereign-citizens movement. Zeek allegedly was a Ponzi/pyramid scheme that gathered more than $850 million.

    Some HYIP promoters move from scheme to scheme to scheme, creating a condition in which losses mount globally and banks become warehouses for fraud proceeds. The SEC yesterday announced charges against alleged Zeek promoter Trudy Gilmond, whom the agency alleged recruited members for multiple failed schemes.

    See the PP Blog’s tag archive of references to Banners Broker or use the search function near the upper-right corner.

    Also see: “Law Firm’s Name Used In Bid To Dupe Members Of Banners Broker, Profit Clicking, MLM Attorney Says.”

    Within the story, the PP Blog showed a menacing communication it had received in January 2013. The story also shows the interconnectivity of certain online MLM schemes, as does this 2013 story: “TelexFree Affiliate Pitches Appear To Have Been ‘Scraped’ To Drive Traffic To Purported Gold And Silver Venture In Panama; Spam Link Leads To Site That Showcases ‘First Zeek Red Carpet Event’ And ‘Banners Broker’ In Folder Labeled ‘aaronsharazeek’