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BULLETIN: Google Says Justice Department Is Investigating Its Advertising Program; Search Giant Sets Aside $500 Million, Notes ‘Potential Resolution’
DISCLOSURE: Until Jan. 9 of this year, the PP Blog displayed Google ads. See this post. BULLETIN: Google disclosed in a regulatory filing yesterday that its advertising program was under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice. The company announced that it has taken a charge of $500 million “in connection with a potential resolution.”…
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Man, 85, Accused Of Selling Unregistered Securities In ‘Shipwreck’ Venture; Recidivist Huckster Hawked Sunken-Treasure Offer While Banned Because Of Previous Misconduct, BCSC Says
Ten years ago, when John Arthur Roche McLoughlin was about 75 years old, the British Columbia Securities Commission accused him of selling unregistered securities in a venture known as Grandby Development Corp., a purported fertilizer company. BCSC imposed a five-year ban that prohibited McLoughlin from acting as a director or officer of any issuer. Because…
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MOTHER’S DAY FANTASY POST: Legendary MLM Scammer Phil Pumpernickel Says He’ll Package ‘Troll Spray’; Fraudster Announces He’ll Coax Affiliates To Trade On Donald Trump’s Name To Reel In The ‘Birthers’
EDITOR’S NOTE: The “story” below is not real. The PP Blog occasionally presents fantasy posts, parody and satire as a means of advancing the discussion about issues in the world of online crime and marketing schemes. SOUTH FLORIDA (PPBlog) — Phil Pumpernickel, the unapologetic scammer who once started an “opportunity” that hawked caskets MLM-style after…
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UPDATE: Promo For Club Asteria Says Earnings ‘1000% Guaranteed,’ Introduces ‘Benefactor’ Program; Pitches Purportedly Show How To Earn ‘Huge Amount Without Doing Nothing’
Club Asteria, a Virginia-based company that acknowledged last week that it had liars selling its “opportunity,” appears to be having difficulty controlling its own members. A multisite promo that includes a promise of guaranteed earnings coupled with a “benefactor” program that encourages members to pay prospects’ fees to join the program now has surfaced. A…
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‘SURF/HYIP HELPERS BEWARE: Woman Who Helped Tennessee Ponzi Schemer Cover Up Fraud Sentenced To 6 Years In Federal Prison; Donna Jones’ Role In $12.3 Million Caper Outlined By Jailed Boss In Court After Investigators ‘Follow The Paper Trail’
EDITOR’S NOTE: Although Donna Jones did not run an autosurf or online HYIP fraud, the case against her is instructive. Indeed, prosecutors said, Jones was an insider who was aware of the Ponzi scheme being conducted by her boss, Michael J. Park. And Jones took an active role in the scheme, encouraging customers to invest,…
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BULLETIN: Arthur Ferdig, Operator Of Collapsed Tradex Ponzi Scheme, Sentenced To Federal Prison For Tax Evasion; IRS Says Money Diverted To Offshore Accounts And Shell Companies
BULLETIN: Arthur Allen Ferdig, a California man who owned a collapsed Forex Ponzi scheme known as Tradex and claimed to have conversed with angels and the “Christ Energy,” has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for tax evasion. Ferdig, 71, admitted he practiced “sophisticated concealment” and stashed Tradex cash in offshore accounts and…
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BULLETIN: SEC Files Emergency Action In California To Halt Alleged Day-Trading Scheme Targeting Senior Citizens; Assets Of Robert C. Butler Frozen After ‘Hedge Fund’ That Purported To Have $8.9 Million Had Only $22, Agency Says
BULLETIN: A man running a day-trading and hedge-fund scheme lied about being a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and was ripping off senior citizens in the area of Indio, Calif., by dazzling them with technology and high-sounding company names, the SEC said in an emergency court filing. At least 17 investors were…
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Two Attorneys, Including One Who Is A Church Bishop, Accused In $52 Million Ponzi Scheme With Alleged Pipeline From Missouri To England
BULLETIN: UPDATED 3:20 P.M. EDT (U.S.A.) Three men have been indicted in Missouri in an alleged Ponzi conspiracy prosecutors said created an illicit pipeline that sucked millions of dollars from investors and put it in the hands of fraudsters in the United States and Britain. Some of the investors were lured into the scheme because…
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