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Microcap & Penny Stocks : Tokyo Joe's Cafe / Societe Anonyme/No Pennies -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Thai Nguyen who wrote (119809)	5/4/2000 2:41:00 PM
From: SIer formerly known as Joe B.	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 119973

Judge won't throw out charges against Tokyo Joe WASHINGTON, May 4 (Reuters) - A federal judge in Chicago refused on Thursday to throw out fraud charges against the creator of the Tokyo Joe investment Web site, handing an initial victory to securities regulators trying to clamp down on fraud on the Internet. The Securities and Exchange Commission accused Yun Soo Oh Park, also known as Tokyo Joe, and his company Tokyo Joe SA of taking $1.1 million in fees from members of the Web site in exchange for investment advice, daily stock picks and access to a private chat room where he allegedly promoted stocks without disclosing his interests. Park's lawyers had filed a motion to dismiss the charges by the securities regulators, arguing that their clients had expressed personal ideas and opinions over the Internet which did not constitute investment advice and that he owed no fiduciary duty to the subscribers. "The court notes initially that defendants meet the basic definition of an 'investment adviser,'" said U.S. District Judge Charles Kocoras in his ruling. "We're very pleased with the results; we were victorious on all counts" in the denial of the motion to dismiss," said Tim Warren, associate regional director in the SEC's Chicago office. Park's lawyers were not immediately available for comment. The defendants also claimed that previous case law protected their speech on the Internet under the First Amendment. "That claim falls on its face" in the court's ruling, Warren said. Park was also accused of selling stock in companies at the same time he was advocating his subscribers to buy without disclosing that information. "Because the alleged facts may show that defendants enjoyed a relationship of trust and confidence with their subscribers or may have assumed a duty to disclose, the SEC has properly alleged its claims based on defendants' omissions," Judge Kocoras said in his ruling. Park will now have to respond to the charges and a 120-day discovery period was set, according to Warren. The SEC is seeking to force Park and his company to disgorge allegedly ill-gotten gains, including prejudgment interest; to impose civil penalties; and to bar the two from engaging in these activities in the future. ((--Jeremy Pelofsky, Reuters SEC Desk, 202-898-8399))