PatrickPretty.com

Tag: Operation Broken Trust

UPDATE: Antihistorical ‘MoneyMakingBrain’ Claim: ‘Law Enforcement Agencies Don’t Pay Attention To What’s Being Said On Forums And Blogs’

“There is a line between First Amendment Rights vs. Libel here. So, when does your right to form an opinion begins (sic) and when does it constitute a defamation of character? The answer is, law enforcement agencies don’t pay attention to what’s being said on forums and blogs, so get your head straight and feet…

Mar 5, 2012
BULLETIN: SEC Employee Was Member Of Collapsed Imperia Invest IBC Fraud Scheme That Targeted Deaf Investors And Drained Millions Of Dollars; ‘Headquarters’ Worker Placed On Administrative Leave

BULLETIN: An employee of the SEC at its Washington headquarters was a member of a fraud scheme under investigation by the agency and shared misleading information about its ongoing probe with other investors, according to a report to Congress by SEC Inspector General H. David Kotz. The document does not reveal the employee’s name or…

Jun 1, 2011
KABOOM! CFTC/FTC Cases Against American Precious Metals LLC Were Part Of Broader Effort By New Task Force Operating In South Florida; Feds, State Throw Down Gauntlet Against Scammers

Kaboom! It turns out that the cases announced this week against American Precious Metals LLC (APM) by the CFTC and FTC were part of a geographically localized law-enforcement initiative that sprouted from “Operation Broken Trust,” a major national initiative undertaken last year by the U.S. Department of Justice and partner agencies as part of the…

May 19, 2011
As Promos On Ponzi Forums Continue And Members Claim IRS Recognition, Club Asteria Acknowledges That Its Members Used PayPal ‘To Cheat Fellow Members’; Says Fraudsters Were Turned Over To Unidentified ‘Authorities’; Existing Members Of Virginia-Based Firm Told To Use Offshore Processors

In June 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice used its Blog to warn about the emerging threat of “mass marketing fraud,” specifically citing the criminal allegations of a $70 million Ponzi fraud against Nicholas Smirnow of Pathway To Prosperity (P2P). P2P was promoted on the TalkGold and MoneyMakerGroup Ponzi forums. A little over a month…

May 17, 2011
SEC Chief Makes Veiled Reference To Imperia Invest Case In Congressional Testimony: Will Ongoing Law-Enforcement Initiatives Spell More Trouble For Serial Online Scammers And Their Enablers?

SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro alluded to the agency’s investigation of the alleged Imperia Invest IBC scam in testimony before Congress this morning, a development that may signal more bad news is in the offing for serial scammers online. Without mentioning Imperia by name, Schapiro told members of the House Subcommittee on Financial Services and General…

Mar 15, 2011
LETTER TO READERS: Reflections On 1,000 PP Blog Posts, The Lionization Of Fools And An Unprecedented Crime Wave That Threatens National Security And Is Filling Stadiums With Victims

Dear Readers, This is actually Post No. 1,007 since the PP Blog switched to the WordPress platform two years ago this month. We’d hoped to commemorate our 1,000th WordPress post in the actual 1,000th post, but missed the chance because of Breaking News concerning the Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force’s Operation Broken Trust. Several hours…

Dec 12, 2010
BULLETIN: National Investment-Fraud Sweep Dubbed ‘Operation Broken Trust’ Nets 532 Defendants; AG Holder Says Capers Caused More Than $10 Billion In Losses; ‘Undercover Operations’ Part of Task Force Arsenal

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and members of President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force said this morning that a nationwide sweep known as “Operation Broken Trust” has netted 343 criminal defendants and 189 civil defendants. Among the targets of the sweep were purveyors of Ponzi schemes, affinity fraud, prime bank/high-yield investment scams, foreign exchange…

Dec 6, 2010