This is a photo of the National Register of Historic Places listing with reference number 7000063
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
Tuesday, July 8, 2014
SEC SETTLES ACTION AGAINST EXECUTIVES IN CONNECTION WITH ALLEGED BRIBERY OF CUSTOMS OFFICIALS
FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
SEC Settles Pending Civil Action Against Noble Executives Mark A. Jackson and James J. Ruehlen
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that former Noble CEO Mark A. Jackson and former Director and Division Manager of Noble's Nigeria subsidiary James J. Ruehlen, who remains an executive at the company, have agreed to settle the SEC's pending civil actions against them. The case had been set for a jury trial before the Honorable Keith P. Ellison, United States District Judge, on July 9, 2014 in Houston, Texas. The Court entered a final judgment in the matter on July 3, 2014.
To settle the SEC's action against him, Jackson consented to the entry of a final judgment enjoining him from violating Section 13(b)(2)(A) of the Exchange Act as a control person pursuant to Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act. Ruehlen agreed to the entry of a final judgment enjoining him from aiding and abetting any violation of Section 13(b)(2)(A) of the Exchange Act.
The SEC filed its complaint in February 2012 and alleged that Jackson and Ruehlen authorized the payment of bribes to customs officials to process false paperwork purporting to show the export and re-import of oil rigs, when in fact the rigs never moved. The SEC alleged that the scheme was designed to save Noble Corporation from losing business and incurring significant costs associated with exporting rigs from Nigeria and then re-importing them under new permits. At the same time it filed its action against Jackson and Ruehlen, the SEC also filed settled charges against Thomas F. O'Rourke, who was a former controller and head of internal audit at Noble. The SEC alleged that O'Rourke helped approve the bribe payments and allowed the bribes to be booked improperly as legitimate operating expenses for the company.
Monday, July 7, 2014
COURT IMPOSES MONETARY JUDGEMENT AGAINST ATTORNEY AND OTHERS FOR ROLES IN UNREGISTERED STOCK SALES
FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Court Imposes Legal Services Bar Against Attorney, and Penny Stock Bars and Significant Monetary Relief Against All Defendants
On June 27, 2014, the U.S. District Court of Nevada issued an order imposing sanctions against an attorney, Marcus Luna, three other individuals - Nathan Montgomery, Adam Daskivich, and David Murtha - and their businesses for their roles in a multi-million dollar scheme to sell shares of Axis Technologies Group, Inc. stock in a public distribution without registration with the Commission. The Court's order:
Prohibits Luna from providing legal services to anyone in connection with the offer or sales of securities pursuant to, or claiming, an exemption under Regulation D.
Bars Luna, Montgomery, Daskivich and Murtha from participating in any offering of penny stocks.
Imposes disgorgement and prejudgment interest against:
Luna and St. Paul Venture Fund: $4.98 million
Montgomery and Minnesota Venture Capital: $2.51 million
Daskivich and Real Estate of Minnesota: $3.49 million
Murtha and Matrix Venture Capital: $1.72 million
Luna: joint and severally with other defendants: $2.39 million.
Imposes civil penalties against:
Luna and St. Paul Venture Fund: $2.03 million
Montgomery and Minnesota Venture Capital: $1.97 million
Daskivich and Real Estate of Minnesota: $2.73 million
Murtha and Matrix Venture Capital: $1.37 million
The court also denied the SEC's request for permanent injunctions for violations of the registration and fraud provisions of the federal securities laws, holding that the legal services and penny stock bars are sufficient.
The court previously granted the SEC's Motion for Summary Judgment on February 26, 2014, finding no genuine issues of material fact remained that the defendants each violated Section 5 of the Securities Act, and that Luna violated Sections 17(a)(1), (2), and (3) of the Securities Act, Section10(b) of the Exchange Act, and Rule 10b-5. The court then ordered the parties to further brief the issue of what remedies were appropriate given defendants' violations.
The Commission acknowledges the assistance of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.
This matter was litigated on behalf of the SEC by Anne Blazek and Timothy Leiman.
Sunday, July 6, 2014
SUNTRUST MORTGAGE TO PAY $320 MILLION SETTLEMENT
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, July 3, 2014
SunTrust Mortgage Agrees to $320 Million Settlement
Money Will Provide Relief to Harmed Borrowers and Establish Prevention Fund
The Department of Justice today announced an agreement with SunTrust Mortgage Inc. that resolves a criminal investigation of SunTrust’s administration of the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).
As detailed in documents filed today, SunTrust misled numerous mortgage servicing customers who sought mortgage relief through HAMP. Specifically, SunTrust made material misrepresentations and omissions to borrowers in HAMP solicitations, and failed to process HAMP applications in a timely fashion. As a result of SunTrust’s mismanagement of HAMP, thousands of homeowners who applied for a HAMP modification with SunTrust suffered serious financial harms.
SunTrust has agreed to pay $320 million to resolve the criminal investigation into SunTrust’s HAMP Program. The money is divided as follows:
Restitution – SunTrust will pay $179 million in restitution to compensate borrowers for damage caused by its mismanagement of HAMP. That money will be distributed to borrowers in eight pre-determined categories of harm. If more than $179 million is needed, the bank will also guarantee an additional $95 million for additional restitution. SunTrust will also pay $10 million in restitution directly to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Forfeiture – SunTrust will pay $16 million in forfeiture. This money will be available to law enforcement agencies working on mortgage fraud and other matters related to the misuse of TARP funds.
Prevention – SunTrust will pay $20 million to establish a fund for distribution to organizations providing counseling and other services to distressed homeowners. Specifically, SunTrust will pay this amount to a grant administrator selected by the government, which funds will in turn be awarded to housing counseling agencies and other non-profits devoted to consumer counseling and advocacy.
In addition to the significant payment, SunTrust has agreed to implement certain remedial measures aimed at preventing future problems like those that led to this investigation. Specifically, it will increase loss mitigation staff, monitor their mortgage modification process, and provide semi-annual reports regarding compliance with the agreement.
This settlement makes clear the Department’s commitment to supplementing its enforcement work with support for prevention programs. The grant fund established by this settlement will help distressed homeowners avoid the harms that befell SunTrust customers. This is real relief for housing agencies, which will compete for grants to increase their counseling and other services to homeowners across the country.
“Instead of helping distressed homeowners, SunTrust’s mismanagement drove up foreclosures, disseminated individual credit and increased costs for hardworking men and women across our nation,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “This resolution will provide much-needed restitution for victims. It will make available substantial funds to help other homeowners avoid foreclosure. And it will result in the kinds of systemic changes needed to ensure that this will not happen again. This outcome demonstrates yet again that the Justice Department will never waver in its ongoing pursuit of those whose reckless and willful actions harm the American people and undermine our financial markets.”
“The $320 million resolution of this long-running investigation requires SunTrust Mortgage to compensate its customers for the harm caused by the company’s false promises in administration of the Home Affordable Modification Program in 2009 and 2010 – conduct thoroughly described in the Statement of Facts that accompanies the settlement documents,” U.S. Attorney Timothy J. Heaphy said today. “Up to $284 million will be paid in restitution directly to the victims of SunTrust’s conduct. SunTrust will also establish a $20 million grant fund which will be distributed to agencies working with distressed homeowners and provide $16 million in asset forfeiture funds that will be used by law enforcement for future mortgage fraud investigations. The company has also agreed to make specific changes in its operations designed to prevent similar problems in the future.
“SunTrust has done the right thing by agreeing to this novel package of restitution, remediation, and prevention, which represents a significant victory not only for SunTrust customers, but also for Americans who will receive counseling and other assistance when faced with financial challenges,” U.S. Attorney Heaphy said. “This settlement demonstrates the commitment of the Department of Justice and the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program to hold financial institutions accountable and provide restitution to those harmed by their conduct.”
“Today’s agreement with SunTrust underlines the importance of holding accountable those individuals and companies who pledge to ensure that homeowners are protected at all times; especially during times when the homeowner is seeking to save their home through a loan modification. SunTrust has conceded that their HAMP program had numerous deficiencies and has harmed a significant amount of homeowners. This behavior will not be tolerated. We are proud to have worked with our law enforcement partners on this case,” said Michael P. Stephens, Acting Inspector General of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General.
“HAMP was designed to be a beacon of hope and opportunity for homeowners in dire straits, but TARP recipient SunTrust, rather than assist homeowners in need, financially ruined many through an utter dereliction of its HAMP program,” said Christy Romero, Special Inspector General for TARP (SIGTARP). “This criminal investigation uncovered that SunTrust so bungled its administration of the program, that many homeowners would have been exponentially better off having never applied through the bank in the first place. Unwilling to put resources into HAMP despite holding billions in TARP funds, SunTrust put piles of unopened homeowners’ HAMP applications in a room. SunTrust’s floor actually buckled under the sheer weight of unopened document packages. Documents and paperwork were lost. Homeowners were improperly foreclosed upon. Treasury was lied to. The negligence with which SunTrust administered its HAMP program is appalling, miserable, inexcusable, and repulsive. Real people lost their homes, and many others faced financial ruin. Ending this behavior and, where necessary, forcing institutions to change their culture through law enforcement by SIGTARP and our partners will help begin the process of restoring faith in financial institutions and healing public trust.”
The investigation of the case was conducted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia, the Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, and the Office of the Inspector General for the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and the United States Postal Inspection Service.
Thursday, July 3, 2014
SunTrust Mortgage Agrees to $320 Million Settlement
Money Will Provide Relief to Harmed Borrowers and Establish Prevention Fund
The Department of Justice today announced an agreement with SunTrust Mortgage Inc. that resolves a criminal investigation of SunTrust’s administration of the Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP).
As detailed in documents filed today, SunTrust misled numerous mortgage servicing customers who sought mortgage relief through HAMP. Specifically, SunTrust made material misrepresentations and omissions to borrowers in HAMP solicitations, and failed to process HAMP applications in a timely fashion. As a result of SunTrust’s mismanagement of HAMP, thousands of homeowners who applied for a HAMP modification with SunTrust suffered serious financial harms.
SunTrust has agreed to pay $320 million to resolve the criminal investigation into SunTrust’s HAMP Program. The money is divided as follows:
Restitution – SunTrust will pay $179 million in restitution to compensate borrowers for damage caused by its mismanagement of HAMP. That money will be distributed to borrowers in eight pre-determined categories of harm. If more than $179 million is needed, the bank will also guarantee an additional $95 million for additional restitution. SunTrust will also pay $10 million in restitution directly to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Forfeiture – SunTrust will pay $16 million in forfeiture. This money will be available to law enforcement agencies working on mortgage fraud and other matters related to the misuse of TARP funds.
Prevention – SunTrust will pay $20 million to establish a fund for distribution to organizations providing counseling and other services to distressed homeowners. Specifically, SunTrust will pay this amount to a grant administrator selected by the government, which funds will in turn be awarded to housing counseling agencies and other non-profits devoted to consumer counseling and advocacy.
In addition to the significant payment, SunTrust has agreed to implement certain remedial measures aimed at preventing future problems like those that led to this investigation. Specifically, it will increase loss mitigation staff, monitor their mortgage modification process, and provide semi-annual reports regarding compliance with the agreement.
This settlement makes clear the Department’s commitment to supplementing its enforcement work with support for prevention programs. The grant fund established by this settlement will help distressed homeowners avoid the harms that befell SunTrust customers. This is real relief for housing agencies, which will compete for grants to increase their counseling and other services to homeowners across the country.
“Instead of helping distressed homeowners, SunTrust’s mismanagement drove up foreclosures, disseminated individual credit and increased costs for hardworking men and women across our nation,” said Attorney General Eric Holder. “This resolution will provide much-needed restitution for victims. It will make available substantial funds to help other homeowners avoid foreclosure. And it will result in the kinds of systemic changes needed to ensure that this will not happen again. This outcome demonstrates yet again that the Justice Department will never waver in its ongoing pursuit of those whose reckless and willful actions harm the American people and undermine our financial markets.”
“The $320 million resolution of this long-running investigation requires SunTrust Mortgage to compensate its customers for the harm caused by the company’s false promises in administration of the Home Affordable Modification Program in 2009 and 2010 – conduct thoroughly described in the Statement of Facts that accompanies the settlement documents,” U.S. Attorney Timothy J. Heaphy said today. “Up to $284 million will be paid in restitution directly to the victims of SunTrust’s conduct. SunTrust will also establish a $20 million grant fund which will be distributed to agencies working with distressed homeowners and provide $16 million in asset forfeiture funds that will be used by law enforcement for future mortgage fraud investigations. The company has also agreed to make specific changes in its operations designed to prevent similar problems in the future.
“SunTrust has done the right thing by agreeing to this novel package of restitution, remediation, and prevention, which represents a significant victory not only for SunTrust customers, but also for Americans who will receive counseling and other assistance when faced with financial challenges,” U.S. Attorney Heaphy said. “This settlement demonstrates the commitment of the Department of Justice and the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program to hold financial institutions accountable and provide restitution to those harmed by their conduct.”
“Today’s agreement with SunTrust underlines the importance of holding accountable those individuals and companies who pledge to ensure that homeowners are protected at all times; especially during times when the homeowner is seeking to save their home through a loan modification. SunTrust has conceded that their HAMP program had numerous deficiencies and has harmed a significant amount of homeowners. This behavior will not be tolerated. We are proud to have worked with our law enforcement partners on this case,” said Michael P. Stephens, Acting Inspector General of the Federal Housing Finance Agency Office of Inspector General.
“HAMP was designed to be a beacon of hope and opportunity for homeowners in dire straits, but TARP recipient SunTrust, rather than assist homeowners in need, financially ruined many through an utter dereliction of its HAMP program,” said Christy Romero, Special Inspector General for TARP (SIGTARP). “This criminal investigation uncovered that SunTrust so bungled its administration of the program, that many homeowners would have been exponentially better off having never applied through the bank in the first place. Unwilling to put resources into HAMP despite holding billions in TARP funds, SunTrust put piles of unopened homeowners’ HAMP applications in a room. SunTrust’s floor actually buckled under the sheer weight of unopened document packages. Documents and paperwork were lost. Homeowners were improperly foreclosed upon. Treasury was lied to. The negligence with which SunTrust administered its HAMP program is appalling, miserable, inexcusable, and repulsive. Real people lost their homes, and many others faced financial ruin. Ending this behavior and, where necessary, forcing institutions to change their culture through law enforcement by SIGTARP and our partners will help begin the process of restoring faith in financial institutions and healing public trust.”
The investigation of the case was conducted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia, the Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program, and the Office of the Inspector General for the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) and the United States Postal Inspection Service.
Thursday, July 3, 2014
SEC SETTLES CHARGES AGAINST ALLEGED PRIME BACK INVESTMENT SCHEME PROMOTER
FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
SEC Files Settled Charges Against Arizona Resident in Prime Bank Investment Scheme
On June 26, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged Cheryl L. Robinson with violating the antifraud and registration provisions of the federal securities laws in connection with an advance-fee high-yield investment scam perpetrated by Switzerland-based Malom Group AG ("Malom") and Las Vegas-based M.Y. Consultants, Inc. As alleged in the complaint, Robinson acted as a promoter who recruited investors for Malom Group AG and M.Y. Consultants, Inc. from approximately 2009 to 2011. In this role, Robinson made materially false and misleading statements to investors about, among other things, Malom's background, its financial resources, and history of success. She also failed to inform investors that none of her clients had received any profits from a transaction with Malom and that all had lost their entire investment. Finally, she omitted to tell any of the investors that she would be paid approximately 25% of the investors' advance fees regardless of whether a transaction produced profits. The complaint also alleged that Robinson acted as an unregistered broker dealer and sold unregistered Malom securities. By virtue of this conduct, the complaint alleges Robinson violated Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Sections 10(b) and 15(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder; and aided and abetted violations of Securities Act Section 17(a) and Exchange Act Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5.
Without admitting or denying the SEC's allegations, Robinson agreed to settle the case against her. The settlement is pending final approval by the court. Specifically, Robinson consented to the entry of a final judgment that (1) permanently enjoins her from future violations of Securities Act Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a), Exchange Act Sections 10(b), 15(a), and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and from aiding and abetting violations of Securities Act Section 17(a) and Exchange Act Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5; (2) permanently enjoins her from directly or indirectly participating in the issuance, offer, or sale of any security, including but not limited to joint venture agreements, proofs of funds, bank guarantees, medium term notes, standby letters of credit, structured notes, and similar instruments, with the exception of the purchase or sale of securities listed on a national securities exchange; (3) orders that she is liable for disgorgement in the amount of $204,417 and $13,802 in prejudgment interest, for a total of $218,219, and waives that amount based on her demonstrated inability to pay. The Commission also decided to forego a civil penalty based on her demonstrated financial condition.
As part of the settlement, and following the entry of the proposed final judgment, Robinson, without admitting or denying the Commission's findings, has consented to the entry of a Commission order, pursuant to Exchange Act Section 15(b)(6), permanently barring her from association with any broker, dealer, investment adviser, municipal securities dealer, municipal advisor, transfer agent, or nationally recognized statistical rating organization, or from participating in an offering of penny stock.
The SEC previously charged Malom Group AG, its principals, and agents with violating the antifraud and securities registration provisions of the federal securities laws in SEC v. Malom Group AG, et al, 2:13-cv-2280 (D. Nev. Dec. 16, 2013), SEC v. Erwin et al., 2:14-cv-623 (D. Nev. Apr. 23, 2014), and SEC v. Smith, 1:14-cv-192 (D.N.H. May 2, 2014). For additional information about these cases, see Litigation Release Number 22890 (Dec. 16, 2013); Litigation Release Number 22978 (Apr. 28, 2014); and Litigation Release Number 22984 (May 2, 2014).
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