SEC sues cancer treatment firm
The Securities and Exchange Commission said it has filed a complaint against a Coral Springs-based company and four people for allegedly raising more than $3 million in a fraudulent, unregistered securities offering.
The SEC said it filed the complaint against Helvetia Pharmaceuticals June 21. The complaint also named as defendants Richard A. Anders, Nicholas Bachynsky, Arthur Scheinert and Laurence Dean.
The complaint alleges the defendants raised money by making fraudulent statements to investors that the money would be used to operate cancer treatment clinics.
According to the SEC's complaint, Helvetia purported to treat cancer patients using a unique, patented therapy using heat to destroy cancer cells.
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida has indicted the four defendants for their role in the scheme, the SEC said.
Helvetia, the SEC said, through Anders, Bachynsky, Scheinert and Dean, raised more than $3 million from about 50 investors from about January 2001 through at least August 2002. The SEC said the company raised the money by selling unregistered Helvetia stock and promissory notes.
Anders said he was Helvetia's president, the SEC said, with Bachynsky as medical director, Scheinert as vice president and Dean as chief financial officer.
Among other things, the SEC complaint alleges the defendants failed to tell investors:
Anders was convicted of securities fraud and Bachynsky was convicted of defrauding the IRS and his medical license was revoked
Helvetia's drug therapy included use of Dinitrophenol (DNP), which the SEC said is a banned, hazardous substance commonly found in weed killers
Four Helvetia investors sued Helvetia, Anders and Scheinert for misrepresentations related to Helvetia's securities offering
Instead of using investor money to fund treatment clinics, Helvetia insiders used it for personal reasons
The SEC's complaint also alleges that the defendants made exaggerated claims about Helvetia's anticipated returns and made false claims of an imminent public offering.
© 2004 American City Business Journals Inc. |
