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Page 23 of 176

January 20, 2022

Florida resident Mary Kathryn Marr was sentenced to 14 years in prison following her guilty plea on charges related to her role in a criminal enterprise that scammed victims into sending members of the conspiracy funds for fraudulent investments based on high-pressure “boiler room” tactics.  The conspirators operated a network of bank accounts in the names of shell companies into which the boiler room agents, and sometimes Marr herself, instructed victims to send their money.  The victims’ funds were then laundered through more bank accounts and sent overseas.  Marr was also ordered to forfeit various assets, pay a fine of $1.5 million, and pay restitution of $14.5 million to victims.  USAO MD FL

Tagged in: Criminal Proceedings, Financial and Investment Fraud, Misrepresentations, Ponzi Schemes, Securities Fraud,

January 19, 2022

William S. Evans III, who did business as Turning Point Investments, together with his wife Francis Evans, have consented to entry of judgment against them requirement the payment of $17 million as restitution as the disgorgement of $10 million.  Evans operated as an unregistered commodity pool operator, and marketed to customers with the promise that he would trade commodity futures on their behalf, making false statements about risks, the likelihood of profits, and his fees.  In fact, Evans misappropriated customer funds for his personal use and to pay other participants in a Ponzi-like scheme.  CFTC

Tagged in: Financial and Investment Fraud, Fraud in CFTC-Regulated Markets, Misrepresentations, Regulatory Violations,

January 14, 2022

Perry Santillo was sentenced to 17.5 years in prison and ordered to pay restitution of more than $100 million following his conviction on charges related to fraudulent investment schemes including the solicitation of funds through and for Lucian Development and City Capital Corporation.  The Ponzi scheme, which operated over ten years, obtained at least $115.5 million from approximately 1000 investors. Santillo and his co-conspirators purchased the businesses of investment advisors and brokers around the country in order to find potential new investors, and used new investments to fund their lavish lifestyles and make interest and other payments to earlier investors. USAO WD NY (related co-defendant)

Tagged in: Criminal Proceedings, Financial and Investment Fraud, Misrepresentations, Ponzi Schemes,

January 12, 2022

Six medical practices affiliated with Interventional Pain Management Center P.C. (IPMC), as well as physician-owner Dr. Amit Poonia, have agreed to pay nearly $7.5 million to resolve allegations of defrauding Medicare and the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program.  In a qui tam suit by Anu Doddapaneni and Christian Reyes, the whistleblowers alleged that Poonia and IPMC violated the False Claims Act by using a billing code that mischaracterized P-Stim and NeuroStim treatments—which transmit electrical pulses through needles placed just under the skin of a patient’s ear—as surgical implantation requiring anesthesia.  USAO EDNY

Tagged in: FCA Federal, Healthcare Fraud, Medical Billing Fraud, Medicare, Misrepresentations, Other Government Health Programs, Provider Fraud, Whistleblower Case,

January 10, 2022

The SEC has issued two awards totaling more than $4 million to three whistleblowers whose information and assistance helped bring about two successful enforcement actions.  In the first order, a single whistleblower who reported internally before providing significant new information to the agency on an existing investigation was awarded $2.6 million.  According to the SEC, the misconduct occurred overseas and would have been difficult to detect without the whistleblower’s tip.  In the second order, two whistleblowers received a joint award of $1.5 million for providing substantial ongoing assistance.  SEC

Tagged in: Financial and Investment Fraud, International Whistleblowers, SEC Whistleblower Reward Program, Securities Fraud, Whistleblower Rewards,

January 3, 2022

Previous metals dealer Lear Capital, Inc., and its founder, Kevin DeMeritt, have agreed to pay $5 million to settle a lawsuit by the New York Attorney General that alleged the company fraudulently charged investors up to 33% in undisclosed commissions, in violation of state laws requiring commodity broker-dealers and telemarketers to register with the state.  As part of the settlement, Lear has agreed to begin providing clear and conspicuous disclosures of the fees, enhance its complaint tracking procedures, and provide better training to its personnel.  NY AG

Tagged in: Financial and Investment Fraud, Misrepresentations, Regulatory Violations,

January 3, 2022

Blockratize, Inc., d/b/a Polymarket has been ordered to pay a $1.4 million civil monetary penalty to resolve charges of violating the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations.  According to the CFTC, Polymarket illegally offered over 900 separate off-exchange event-based binary options contracts, and failed to obtain designation as a designated contract market (DCM), or register as a swap execution facility (SEF).  CFTC

Tagged in: Financial and Investment Fraud, Fraud in CFTC-Regulated Markets, Regulatory Violations,

December 21, 2021

Financial services firm NatWest Markets Plc has pleaded guilty to charges related to its manipulation of the market for U.S. Treasury futures contracts and for the purchase and sale of U.S. Treasury securities in the secondary (cash) market.  NatWest will pay approximately $35 million in criminal fines, restitution, and forfeiture.  The government charged that NatWest traders engaged in spoofing by placing orders with the intent to cancel those orders before execution in order to artificially push up or down the prevailing market price.  DOJ; USAO CT

Tagged in: Criminal Proceedings, Financial and Investment Fraud, Financial Institution Fraud, Market Manipulation and Trading Violations,

December 21, 2021

Nikola Corporation will pay $125 million to resolve charges that the transportation systems provider, which designs and manufactures electric trucks and hydrogen fuel systems, misrepresented or omitted material facts about its products, technical advancements, and commercial prospects.  Many of these statements were made by Nikola’s founder and former CEO, Trevor Milton, on social media and otherwise, both before and after Nikola went public through a merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC).  An SEC action against Milton is continuing.   SEC

Tagged in: Financial and Investment Fraud, Misrepresentations, Securities Fraud,

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