More in the "Bringing a lawsuit against disparaging remarks is not proof of innocence" department:
Today saw the epilogue to the story of an ancient (in terms of internet time) investment chat board lawsuit.
The beginning of this saga occurred when an anonymous poster on Prodigy's Money Talk board in Oct., 1994 posted claims that among other things that Stratton Oakmont brokerage and its president Daniel Porush committed criminal and fraudulent acts in connection with the Solomon-Page Ltd IPO and that Porush was "seen to be proven criminal". Stratton Oakmont and Porush brought a $200 million libel suit against Prodigy and the unknown poster. Ultimately, Prodigy settled with Stratton Oakmont/Porush dropping their claims against Prodigy in return for the latter saying that they were sorry. No money was paid by Prodigy to the plaintiffs.
Today it was reported that Porush and former Stratton Oakmont chairman Jordan Belfort have pleaded guilty to a series of criminal securities fraud charges:
Stratton Oakmont Execs Plead Guilty to Expanded Fraud Charges
New York, Sept. 23 (Bloomberg) -- The former chairman and president of Stratton Oakmont Inc., a defunct brokerage firm, have pleaded guilty to an expanded series of stock-fraud charges, federal prosecutors said.
Former Chairman Jordan Belfort, 37, and Daniel Porush, 42, who was president of the firm, were charged last September by the U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn with 27 counts including securities fraud, money laundering and obstruction of justice, in a scheme that lasted from 1990 to 1997. Belfort pleaded guilty in May and Porush, in December, to two counts each of conspiracy to commit stock fraud and money laundering.
The pleadings unsealed today indicate that the fraud at Stratton was greater than previously disclosed. Belfort and Porush each pleaded guilty to eight new criminal counts, including manipulating the prices of at least 34 initial public offerings Stratton underwrote and money laundering now believed to total at least $80 million. Porush also pleaded guilty to charges of conspiring to trade on inside information involving a proposed merger between ITT Corp. and Caesar's World while at Stratton, and to perjury, prosecutors said.
''These guilty pleas represent the successful prosecutions of the two principal owners of perhaps the most infamous boiler room brokerage in recent history,'' said Loretta Lynch, U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn, New York.
Belfort and Porush face a maximum of 20 years in prison, plus millions in fines and restitution for the hundreds of millions of dollars Stratton investors lost, said Joel Cohen, assistant U.S. Attorney in Brooklyn, who prosecuted the case. The men have already forfeited property worth at least $16 million. ...
Other company IPOs Belfort and Porush are accused of manipulating include: Steven Madden Ltd., Select Media Communications Inc., The Solomon-Page Group Ltd. ...
#reply-11340731
For further details on the case see:
jmls.edu
jmls.edu
Note that the precedent set here in connection with the potential liability of an investment chat board for statements made by posters is now essentially moot based on surviving portions of the Communications Decency Act - see:
ssbb.com
Settlement details: fac.org
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