SEC Announces Fraud Charges Against Two Executives in Scheme Involving Fake Occupants at Senior Residences
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced fraud charges against two former top executives at a Wisconsin-based assisted living provider accused of listing fake occupants at some senior residences in order to meet the requirements of a lease to operate the facilities. The SEC Enforcement Division alleges that then-CEO Laurie Bebo and then-CFO John Buono devised a scheme involving false disclosures and manipulation of internal books and records when it appeared likely that their company Assisted Living Concepts Inc. (ALC) would default on financial promises known as covenants in a lease agreement with a Chicago-based real estate investment trust called…
Read MoreSEC Charges California Resident With Fraudulent Sales of Stock
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged the owner of several now-defunct investment entities with fraudulently selling shares of stock that he claimed to own when he had actually purchased them for others a few years before. The SEC alleges that Vinay Kumar Nevatia, who used several aliases while living in Palo Alto, Calif., sold approximately $900,000 worth of stock he supposedly owned in a privately-held information technology company called CSS Corp. Technologies (Mauritius) Limited. He deceived the buyers into believing that he owned the shares, orchestrated a series of secret wire transfers, and induced the stock transfer agent into…
Read MoreSEC Names Kevin Kelcourse as Associate Director for Exam Program in Boston
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that it has named Kevin M. Kelcourse as the associate director for the Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) in Boston. In that role, he will oversee the SEC’s exam program in six New England states with a staff of approximately 65 examiners, accountants and attorneys. Mr. Kelcourse has spent 15 years in the SEC’s Boston office, starting as a senior counsel in the Enforcement Division in 1999 and later serving as a branch chief. Since 2010, he has been an assistant regional director and an assistant director in the Enforcement Division’s…
Read MoreSEC Charges HSBC’s Swiss Private Banking Unit With Providing Unregistered Services to U.S. Clients
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged HSBC’s Swiss-based private banking arm with violating federal securities laws by failing to register with the SEC before providing cross-border brokerage and investment advisory services to U.S. clients. HSBC Private Bank (Suisse) agreed to admit wrongdoing and pay $12.5 million to settle the SEC’s charges. “HSBC’s Swiss private banking unit illegally conducted advisory or brokerage business with U.S. customers,” said Andrew J. Ceresney, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. “HSBC Private Bank’s efforts to prevent registration violations ultimately failed because their compliance initiatives were not effectively implemented or monitored.” According to the…
Read MoreSEC Charges Penny Stock Company Executives in New Jersey With Issuing False Press Releases to Inflate Stock Price
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged father-and-son executives at a New Jersey-based penny stock company for issuing false and misleading press releases while secretly selling thousands of their own stock shares into the market. They agreed to pay nearly $325,000 and accept officer-and-director bars to settle the SEC’s charges. Conolog Corporation’s public filings state that it manufactures communications equipment primarily for use by electric utilities, fiber optic service providers, and the military. The SEC alleges that Conolog issued three consecutive press releases in early 2010 with distorted information at the behest of chairman and then-CEO Robert Benou with assistance…
Read More