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 […]
KABOOM! Texas Jury Hits ‘Debt-Repair’ MLM Firm With $13.8 Million Verdict; Panel Even Says Defendants Must Pay State’s Cost If They Appeal
BULLETIN: UPDATED 10:03 P.M. EDT (U.S.A.) A jury in Harris County, Texas, has thrown down the gauntlet to hucksters targeting financially strapped consumers by finding more than 1,400 violations and returning a spectacular verdict of $13.8 million against a purported “debt repair” firm that had a multilevel-marketing component. The jury, which found that the accused […]
BULLETIN: Corrupt MLMers Found Guilty Of Operating Pyramid Scheme And Stock Swindle; James A. Sweeney And Patrick M. Ryan Face Decades In Prison
BULLETIN: In a case that could have been taken from the MLM and security swindler’s playbook, James A. Sweeney and Patrick M. Ryan have been found guilty by a state jury in California of operating a pyramid scheme and stock fraud and stealing $8.2 million after soliciting business at “seminars.” The men face more than […]
BULLETIN: Appeals Court Upholds Conviction Of James Bunchan, Pyramid Schemer Who Scammed Investors, Plotted Murder Of 12 Witnesses And Identified Federal Prosecutor As Possible Homicide Target
BULLETIN: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has upheld the conviction of James Bunchan in a murder-for-hire plot that grew from a pyramid scheme that gathered $20 million and mostly targeted people of Cambodian descent. Federal prosecutors described the pyramid scheme as “devastating,” saying it relied on smoke and mirrors to fleece […]
Another MPB Today Site Uses Walmart’s Name In Domain Name; Positions ‘Grocery’ Biz As ‘Freedom Club’ In Domain Hidden Behind Proxy; Uses Images Of Buffet, Trump And Late Sam Walton
Yet-another domain linked to the purported MPB Today “grocery” program is using Walmart’s name in its domain name. The domain name is registered behind a proxy and uses images of Warren Buffet, Donald Trump and Sam Walton to position the opportunity as a “Freedom Club.” Sam Walton is the late founder of Walmart. It is […]
EDITORIAL: Prized Magazine ‘Newsweek’ Acquired For $1; Publishing Continues To Bleed — Even As Autosurf Cheerleaders Say They Have The Answer To Lagging Ad Sales
The Associated Press reported yesterday that the Washington Post sold Newsweek magazine — an American treasure — for $1. The Post also absorbed $10 million in debt for Newsweek, which lost nearly $30 million last year. How much is $30 million? Well, it’s about $1.6 million less than AdSurfDaily President Andy Bowdoin had in a […]
ANOTHER MYTH-BUSTER: U.S. Extradites ‘Legal Adviser’ To Corrupt MLM From Colombia; Margarita Pabon Castro Charged With Helping Pyramid Scheme Launder Money For Narco Businesses
EDITOR’S NOTE: It is common for fraudsters to claim that “offshore” locations insulate HYIPs, autosurfs and other investment-fraud schemes from prosecution in the United States. It is equally common for purveyors to claim the schemes are harmless. The story of the alleged DMG pyramid scheme is one in which prosecutors allege a monstrous multilevel-marketing company […]
Real HYIP Expert Says ‘Notion Of Secrecy’ In Commercial Fraud Meant To Discourage Reports To Law Enforcement; James Byrne Consulted With Government Before P2P Ponzi Case Was Filed
EDITOR’S NOTE: Here is the declaration of James E. Byrne, an expert with whom the government consulted in the Nicholas Smirnow/Pathway To Prosperity Ponzi scheme case. It is a remarkable read — one that provides a free education from an expert who has consulted with the FBI and Scotland Yard, among other prominent law-enforcement organizations. […]