to think I followed these guys ...
SEC v. Torsten Prochnow d/b/a/ Stockreporter.de, Dennis C. Hass and World of
Internet.com AG
(U.S. District Court, Northern District of California)
(SEC Contact: Donald Hoerl, 303-844-1060)
The SEC alleges that Torsten Prochnow and Dennis C. Hass, residents of Germany, touted
the stocks of
approximately 64 U.S. public companies under the name Stockreporter.de. The touts have
been disseminated
through postings on Stockreporter.de's Internet website and numerous press releases. As set
forth in the complaint,
Prochnow, Hass and WorldofInternet.com AG (a German corporation owned by Prochnow
and Hass) targeted U.S.
investors and these investors purchased the touted stocks based on the Stockreporter.de
recommendations. The
Stockreporter.de website contained false statements concerning the purportedly "long-term"
trading intentions of
Stockreporter.de's principals. The website also contained baseless financial and/or stock
price projections
concerning one of the touted issuers. The website also falsely stated that Stockreporter.de's
principals were not
compensated for their touting, and both the website and press releases failed to disclose
both the nature and source
of the compensation. The touts caused the price and trading volume of the stock of certain
issuers to increase
significantly in the short term. Baseless recommendations resulted in price and volume for 28
stocks increasing an
average of between 28 percent and 390 percent. On at least 15 occasions, the SEC alleges
that Prochnow and Hass
sold their holdings of the touted stocks into the resulting inflated market, realizing profits of
$111,530. Without
admitting or denying the SEC's allegations, Prochnow and Hass have agreed to the entry of
an order that enjoins
them from future violations of Section 17(b) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of
the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 under the Exchange Act. The order also requires
them, jointly and severally,
to disgorge $111,520 plus prejudgment interest, and for each to pay a civil penalty of
$50,000.
BBAN tsk ... tsk
11. SEC v. Broadband Wireless International Corporation, BroadCom Wireless
Communications Corporation,
Ivan W. Webb and Donald L. Knight
(U.S. District Court, Western District of Oklahoma; Civil Action No. 00-1375-R)
(SEC Contact: Spencer Barasch, 817-978-6425)
On August 11, 2000, the SEC filed an emergency enforcement action against Ivan Webb
and Donald L. Knight, two
recidivist securities laws violators engaged in an ongoing manipulation scheme involving the
stock of Broadband
Wireless International Corp, traded in the over-the-counter market under the symbol
"BBAN." During the fall of
1999, Knight and Webb caused BBAN to issue several press releases and file reports with
the SEC that
fraudulently touted the company's purported acquisition of several private
telecommunications companies, none of
which ever came to fruition. Knight and Webb further hyped the company's stock on the
company's website and on
an Internet bulletin board. The promotional or "pumping" efforts resulted in a dramatic
increase in the company's
stock. Between late 1999 and February 2000, the stock price increased 10,000%, from 12
cents per share to over
$12 per share. Concurrently, Knight, who is on criminal probation for a prior securities fraud
scheme, sold or
"dumped" millions of shares of restricted BBAN stock, reaping at least $5 million in illicit
profits. Later in the
scheme, Knight, in an effort to regain control over BBAN from Webb, conducted a
fraudulent Internet proxy
solicitation through BroadCom Wireless Communications Corp. (a company he controlled).
On the same day the
suit was filed, a federal court entered orders freezing the assets of all defendants and
appointed a receiver to take
control of BBAN and BroadCom. An Oklahoma U.S. Attorney simultaneously filed a
petition to revoke Knight's
criminal probation. The Commission also seeks preliminary and permanent injunctions,
disgorgement and civil
penalties against Knight, BroadCom, Webb and BBAN.
Additional Materials Available on This Topic
Press Version of the "Pump&Dump.con" brochure (Tips for Avoiding Stock Scams on the
Internet)
Linda |
