.Fraud charge filed against associate of slain Colts Neck stock promoters
Friday, October 08, 2004
BY JOHN P. MARTIN
Star-Ledger Staff
A onetime Marlboro Township businessman was indicted yesterday for securities fraud stemming from his dealings with two penny-stock promoters who later died in a grisly, unsolved murder in Colts Neck.
Stuart Bockler, 52, faces a single count of failing to disclose his compensation for marketing Global DataTel, which touted itself as an Internet consulting firm and crashed after a stock run-up five years ago.
The company became infamous, however, for the October 1999 gangland style killings of two of its key promoters, Albert Alain Chalem and Maier Lehmann. The men were gunned down and left in a Colts Neck mansion.
Chalem, who reportedly had ties to organized crime, had been shot in his mouth, ears and eyes -- fueling whispers of a mob hit.
Bockler's indictment makes no mention of the killings.
Instead, it charges that Bockler hyped the company as a "strong buy" on an investment Web site he operated, but failed to disclose that he had been hired to market the company and that he netted $175,000 in stock profits from sales of Global shares.
The charge, a violation of securities law, carries a maximum five-year prison term.
Bockler could not be reached for comment. There is no telephone listing for him in New Jersey and prosecutors said he has not yet hired an attorney.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mauro Wolfe said Bockler is expected to be arraigned in federal court in Newark within two weeks.
In April, a lawyer for Chalem pleaded guilty in federal court in Newark to securities fraud related to the Global Tel venture.
The lawyer, Allen Barry Witz, said that he had cooperated extensively with authorities, and that the cooperation could put him in danger. Witz would not elaborate, but denied knowing anything about the slayings.
Michael Drewniak, a spokesman for U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie, said yesterday the investigation is continuing.
John P. Martin covers federal courts. He can be reached at jmartin@starledger.com or (973) 622-3405. |
