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Tag: ASD

KABOOM! Banners Broker MLM ‘Program’ Described As ‘Criminal Enterprise’ That Gathered Tens Of Million Of Dollars

“Affiliates found to be contributing to the negativity on the Internet will have their accounts locked, they will be banned from participating in the Banners Broker system and they will forfeit all of their inventory and revenue.” — Banners Broker threat to members, February 2014 “It is the position of investigators that this business was…

Oct 4, 2014
NEW ENGLAND PUBLIC RADIO: Secretary Galvin Talks TelexFree, Sann Rodrigues And ‘IFreeX,’ Tells Station Accused Huckster’s ‘Current Whereabouts . . . Unknown’

UPDATED 8 A.M. EDT U.S.A. New England Public Radio has a minute-long audio report on TelexFree, iFreeX and Sann Rodrigues, including comments from Massachusetts Commonwealth Secretary William Galvin. An NEPR text report is available here. Look under the byline of Kari Njiiri for a link to the audio report. Rodrigues, accused in April 2014 by…

Oct 3, 2014
SPECIAL REPORT: eAdGear ‘Program’ Allegedly Traded Falsely On Names Of Famous Companies And Brands; SEC Contacted Google, Yahoo, Target, Victoria’s Secret (And More) To Refute Claims; Separately, ‘Bossteam’ Enterprise In Canada Operated In Similar Fashion, Records Show

EDITOR’S NOTE: eAdGear, which had entities in California and Hong Kong, “primarily” targeted “investors in the U.S., China, and Taiwan” and gathered $129 million in a combined pyramid- and Ponzi scheme that engaged in brand-leeching, the SEC alleged last week. An MLM scam known as WCM777, which allegedly gathered more than $80 million, also engaged…

Sep 28, 2014
ANOTHER MLM PR DISASTER: Zhunrize, Alleged Worldwide Pyramid Scheme That Gathered $105 Million, Was Presented As A ‘Plan B’

2ND UPDATE 5:25 P.M. EDT U.S.A. Purported “Plans B” are one of the core signatures of the the MLM HYIP sphere, which is known for incredibly toxic global frauds such as Zeek Rewards and AdSurfDaily. In 2009, an ASD reload scam known as AdViewGlobal was positioned as a “Plan B.” The individual schemes of Zeek…

Sep 24, 2014
Purported ‘Sovereign Citizen’ Who Bizarrely Claimed His Authority Came From ‘The Vatican’ Convicted Of Issuing Bogus Diplomatic Credentials

EDITOR’S NOTE: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) are referenced in the story about purported “sovereign citizen” James T. McBride below. ICE/HSI also are involved in the investigation of the alleged TelexFree Ponzi- and pyramid scheme. Whether TelexFree had any “sovereign citizens” in its ranks is unclear. “Sovereign citizens,” however,…

Aug 15, 2014
BULLETIN: MLM Attorney And Companion Entity Received $843,000 Through Sale Of ‘Bogus Compliance Course’ That Served As ‘Window Dressing’ For Ponzi- And Pyramid Scheme, Zeek Receiver Says

BULLETIN: (2nd update 9:54 p.m. EDT U.S.A.) MLM attorney Kevin Grimes and a companion entity known as MLM Compliance VT LLC received $843,000 from the Zeek Rewards pyramid- and Ponzi scheme through the sale of a “bogus compliance course,” receiver Kenneth D. Bell has alleged in an amended complaint. The amended complaint, filed yesterday, includes…

Aug 6, 2014
BULLETIN: Zeek Receiver References AdSurfDaily Ponzi Case

BULLETIN: (UPDATED 4:29 P.M. EDT U.S.A.) Zeek Rewards receiver Kenneth D. Bell — for the first time — has referenced the AdSurfDaily Ponzi case in a federal court filing. Zeek, believed to have gathered on the order of $850 million, is known to have had participants in common with ASD, a $119 million fraud. Some MLM…

Jul 30, 2014
Zeek Receiver Seeks Nearly $2.1 Million From Alleged Winner And Former AdSurfDaily Ponzi Pitchman Todd Disner; Records Show Zeek Paid Him More Than $7,000 On Same Day He Sued United States For Alleged Misdeeds In ASD Case

Zeek Rewards “winner” Todd Disner owes the receivership estate $2,079,757.88, according to a motion asking the court clerk to enter a default judgment. Receiver Kenneth D. Bell filed for the judgment July 9 in federal court for the Western District of North Carolina, seeking not only Disner’s alleged Zeek haul of $1,800,037.06, but also interest…

Jul 10, 2014
EDITORIAL: On The War In Zeekland And HYIP Rabbit Holes

EDITOR’S NOTE: On Feb. 5, 2014, Zeek figures and alleged insiders Dawn Wright-Olivares and Daniel Olivares pleaded guilty to federal crimes. Wright-Olivares pleaded guilty to investment-fraud conspiracy and tax-fraud conspiracy. Olivares pleaded guilty to investment-fraud conspiracy. Federal prosecutors in the Western District of North Carolina are maintaining an information site here. Kenneth D. Bell, the…

Jul 1, 2014
BULLETIN: Merrill May Be Turning Against Wanzeler

BULLETIN: (5th Update 10:06 p.m. EDT U.S.A.) A defense filing by alleged TelexFree co-owner James Merrill may signal a serious divide between Merrill and Carlos Wanzeler, now described by the United States as an international fugitive. At the same time, new defense filings by Merrill say arguments made in bankruptcy court that suggest TelexFree could…

Jun 2, 2014
Realty Firm Linked To Carlos And Katia Wanzeler Also Linked To Former TelexFree CFO Joe Craft

(2nd Update 2:12 P.M. EDT U.S.A.) Acceris Realty Estate LLC, a Massachusetts company that listed Katia Wanzeler as its registered agent, was formed by Joe H. Craft in February 2013, according to corporation records in Massachusetts. Craft, accused by the SEC last month of securities fraud at TelexFree, is TelexFree’s former CFO. The appearance of…

May 20, 2014