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Tag: SEC

MYTH-SHATTERING CASE: Local Prosecutors Extradite Ronald Paul Shade From Thailand To Face Real-Estate Ponzi Charges; Shade Also Accused Of ‘Financial Elder Abuse’

EDITOR’S NOTE: The PP Blog has covered a number of stories in which U.S. residents living overseas were extradited to the United States to face Ponzi charges. The case against Ronald Paul Shade is another one — and it’s one that demonstrates that an extradition can occur even if a defendant is not charged with…

Jul 21, 2010
Now, A $145 Million Fraud Scheme in Utah; SEC Charges Travis Wright Amid ‘Sandwich In A Can’ Allegations

A Utah man whose assets — including a taxidermy of a full-body African lion — was put on the action block amid Ponzi allegations earlier this year was selling unregistered securities and running a $145 million offering fraud, the SEC said today. Charged in the case was Travis L. Wright. The SEC said the scheme…

Jul 2, 2010
BULLETIN: Another Florida Ponzi Scheme: SEC Sues Estate Of Dead Man, Saying Kenneth Wayne McLeod And His Companies Ripped Off Members Of ‘Law Enforcement’ And Operated Ponzi Scheme For Decades

BULLETIN: The SEC has gone to court in Florida to obtain emergency relief against two companies and their late owner, alleging that Kenneth Wayne McLeod targeted government employees and members of law enforcement to invest in a government bond fund that did not exist. McLeod, 48, was found dead Tuesday in Jacksonville’s Mandarin Park. Local…

Jun 25, 2010
BULLETIN: Another Ponzi Scheme In South Florida; SEC Alleges $28 Million Fraud Against Trade-LLC

A Florida company — Trade-LLC — and its operators have been accused of running a $28 million Ponzi scheme that fleeced members of three investment clubs. Named defendants by the SEC were Trade-LLC and its managing members, Philip W. Milton and William Center. The scam operated in the Palm Beach Gardens area, and affected more…

Jun 22, 2010
U.S., German, British, Canadian Provincial Regulators Cooperate In Probe Of Alleged ‘Oil And Gas’ Fraud Scheme Operating In Florida, Texas And Aruba; SEC Sues Justin Solomon And Affiliated Firms

A Florida man selling “joint ventures” in oil-and-gas businesses in Texas to overseas clients through corporate arms in the United States and Aruba has been accused of fraud by the SEC. Named defendants in the case were Justin Solomon of Deerfield Beach, Fla., and three affiliated companies: Seisma Oil Research LLC of Boca Raton, Fla.,…

Jun 18, 2010
KABOOM! KABOOM! KABOOM! KABOOM! KABOOM! 5 Separate Federal Probes Lead To Dozens Of Fraud Arrests In Multiple States; 1 Case Alleges Nearly $2 Billion Scheme

BULLETIN: The U.S. government has announced charges against at least 43 defendants in five separate financial-fraud schemes, the largest of which allegedly involved $1.9 billion and contributed to the collapse last year of a bank with 346 branches and a mortage-lending company in Florida. Smaller schemes in cases outlined by federal prosecutors today involved tens…

Jun 16, 2010
Richard Elkinson Ordered To Pay $29 Million In Ponzi Case; 77-Year-Schemer Still Jailed After Arrest At Mississippi Casino In January

A 77-year-old man who fleeced clients by telling them he brokered contracts for a Japanese company that provided uniforms for the Winter Olympics, the Pan American games and the government has been ordered to pay $29 million in a civil case brought by the SEC. Richard Elkinson is jailed in Massachusetts after being arrested at…

Jun 14, 2010
Affiliate Links Show That Surf’s Up Mod And ASD Members Hold High Positions In Upstart Surf: Things To Consider If You Are Tempted To Join AdPayDaily

Dear Readers, We have received a few inquiries about a new surfing program called AdPayDaily (APD). Our initial take is that the program is a dressed-up version of AdSurfDaily, AdViewGlobal, BizAdSplash and AdGateWorld and that the operators are persuaded they’ve found a word combination and legal structure that will neutralize critics and law enforcement should…

Jun 13, 2010
SEC: Texas ‘Man Of God’ Ran Nigerian ‘Oil Tanker’ Scheme On Elderly Christians Who Believe He’ll Still Deliver; One Widow May Be Out More Than $1 Million

EDITOR’S NOTE: The allegations against Samuel O. LeMaire are alarming. The case against him may prove to be one that demonstrates how vulnerable people of faith may be to affinity fraud while at once demonstrating how victims don’t want to believe they’ve been fleeced by a con artist even when the evidence is overwhelming. As…

Jun 13, 2010
BULLETIN: Ponzi Suspect Alan Todd May, On Lam From Dallas And Wanted By U.S. Secret Service, Captured In San Francisco

BULLETIN: Ponzi suspect Alan Todd May of Dallas has been captured by the U.S. Marshals Service in San Francisco. May, 45, was wanted by the U.S. Secret Service. In March, the SEC accused May of running an oil-and-gas Ponzi scheme through companies variously known as Prosper Oil & Gas Inc. and Prosper Energy Inc. May,…

Jun 13, 2010
Head Of Justice Department’s Criminal Division Announces Guilty Plea Of Texas Man In Commodities Ponzi Case; Multiagency Crackdown Against Scammers Continues

In yet another sign that U.S. policy is to turn up the heat on Ponzi and HYIP purveyors, the head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division announced the guilty plea of a Texas man accused both criminally and civilly of running a Forex HYIP and Ponzi scheme. Ray M. White, 51, of Mansfield, faces up…

Jun 13, 2010