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SEC Enforcement Actions

					
The  Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is the United States agency with primary responsibility for enforcing federal securities laws. Whistleblowers with knowledge of violations of the federal securities laws can submit a claim to the SEC under the SEC Whistleblower Reward Program, and may be eligible to receive  monetary rewards and protection against retaliation by employers.


Below are summaries of recent SEC settlements or successful prosecutions. If you believe you have information about fraud which could give  rise to an SEC enforcement action and claim under the SEC Whistleblower Reward Program, please contact us to speak with one of our experienced whistleblower attorneys.

				

			

			
						
					
			

	
		
		

			

				
				
July 23, 2015

				 Three former employees of broker-dealer Oppenheimer settled charges stemming from the unregistered sales of billions of shares of penny stocks on behalf of a customer.  This action relates to a previously settled enforcement action against Oppenheimer in which the broker-dealer admitted wrong-doing and paid $20 million to the SEC and the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.  According to the SEC’s order, the former employees failed to make reasonable inquiries or provide appropriate oversight in the face of red flags indicating that their customer’s stock sales were not exempt from registration.  SEC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Financial Institution Fraud, 
													  Regulatory Violations, 
													  Securities Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
July 21, 2015

				 The SEC charged three men, currently living in Israel, with defrauding investors by disseminating promotional e-mails exhorting readers to immediately buy purportedly hot stocks so they could secretly sell their own holdings at a substantial profit, a classic “pump and dump” scheme.  According to the allegations in the complaint, the men pumped the price of penny stocks by as much as 1,800 percent, permitting them to take over $2.8 million in trading profits.  In a parallel action, the Southern District of New York’s U.S. Attorney’s office has brought criminal charges against the three men.  SEC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Market Manipulation and Trading Violations, 
													  Misrepresentations, 
													  Securities Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
July 16, 2015

				 The SEC charged Pennsylvania real estate attorney, Herbert Sudfeld, with insider trading in the stock of Harleysville Group, Inc. in advance of the 2011 announcement of a $760 million merger of Harleysville and Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company.  According to the complaint, Sudfeld illegally traded on the news that sent Harleysville’s stock price up 87%.  SEC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Insider Trading, 
													  Securities Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
July 14, 2015

				 The SEC charged 15 individuals and 19 entities for their roles in alleged schemes to manipulate the trading of microcap stocks.  The defendants include two microcap issuers (Warrier Girl Corp. and Nature’s Peak, formerly Everock, Inc.), six firms alleged to have acted as unregistered broker-dealers for customers wishing to conceal their stock ownership and manipulate the microcap market, owners and employees at these six firms, customers, and stock promoters.  Defendant Moneyline Brokers is alleged to have unlawfully operated as a broker-dealer for U.S.-based customers who engaged in “pump and dump” schemes.  SEC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Market Manipulation and Trading Violations, 
													  Misrepresentations, 
													  Regulatory Violations, 
													  Securities Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
July 14, 2015

				 OZ Management LP admitted wrongdoing and agreed to pay a $4.25 million penalty to settle charges that it provided inaccurate trade data to four prime brokers, causing inaccuracies in the brokers’ books and records and in data provided to the SEC in investigations.  SEC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Misrepresentations, 
													  Securities Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
July 13, 2015

				 The SEC announced a settlement with Frank Tamayo, a Brooklyn man who cooperated with the SEC’s investigation of an insider trading scheme.  Tamayo served as the intermediary between a law firm clerk and stockbroker.  The clerk would give Tamayo non-public information about the pending corporate transactions of his law firm’s clients and Tamayo would pass this on post-its or napkins to the stockbroker who would trade on this information for Tamayo, himself, and others.  The SEC previously brought charges against the clerk and the broker.  Under the terms of Tamayo’s settlement, he agreed to disgorge $1 million in ill-gotten gains, but this is deemed satisfied by orders of forfeiture or restitution from a parallel criminal case in which he pled guilty.  SEC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Insider Trading, 
													  Securities Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
July 6, 2015

				 The SEC charged Bay Area oil and gas company, Luca International Group, and its CEO, Bingqing Yang, with running a $68 million Ponzi-like scheme and affinity fraud that targeted the Chinese-American community in California and investors in Asia, including some solicited as part of the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program.  SEC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Ponzi Schemes, 
													  Securities Fraud, 
													  Visa Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
June 23, 2015

				 The SEC charged Gregg R. Mulholland, a microcap promoter, with illegally selling more than 83 million penny stock shares that he secretly obtained through at least 10 different offshore front companies.  Mulholland was previously charged by the SEC in 2011 for the fraudulent pump-and-dump manipulation of a sports drink company founded by Daniel “Rudy” Ruettiger, known for having inspired the motion picture “Rudy.”  In 2013, the SEC obtained a monetary judgment against Mulholland for more than $5.3 million. SEC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Misrepresentations, 
													  Regulatory Violations, 
													  Securities Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			




	
		
		

			

				
				
June 23, 2015

				 The SEC charged Ireeco LLC and Ireeco Limited with illegally brokering more than $79 million of investments by foreigners seeking U.S. residency through the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program.  The companies are charged with acting as unregistered brokers for more than 150 EB-5 investors.  SEC				 					 

						
Tagged in:
													  Regulatory Violations, 
													  Securities Fraud, 
													  Visa Fraud, 
												
						

					
	
							
	
		
		
	


 			


											

						

								

									
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