February 2011

Seven individuals charged by SEC in global warming scheme

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) today charged seven individuals with perpetrating a fraudulent pump-and-dump scheme in the stock of a sham company that purported to provide products and services to fight global warming. The scheme resulted in more than $7 million in illicit profits from the sales of stock in CO2 Tech Ltd. at artificially inflated prices. The company, based in London, touted impressive business relationships and anti-global warming technology innovations, but was found to have no significant assets or operations.

According to the SEC’s complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, the scheme was enacted through Red Sea Management Ltd., a Costa Rican asset protection company that laundered millions of dollars in illicit trading proceeds out of the United States on behalf of its clients. Charged in the in the fraudulent pump-and-dump scheme were: Jonathan R. Curshen, a Florida resident who founded and led Red Sea, David C. Ricci and Ronny Morales Salazar of Costa Rica, who were Red Sea stock traders, Ariav “Eric” Weinbaum and Yitzchak Zigdon of Israel, who were Red Sea clients, Robert L. Weidenbaum, of Florida, who was a stock promoter and operator of CLX & Associates, and Michael S. Krome, a New York lawyer who allegedly wrote a fraudulent opinion letter. Without admitting or denying the allegations in the complaint, Ricci settled the SEC’s charges by agreeing to an injunction against future violations of these provisions and a penny stock bar.

In a related criminal action, charges brought by the Justice Department’s Criminal Division were unsealed today against Curshen, Krome, Salazar, Weidenbaum, Weinbaum, and Zigdon. The defendants were charged variously with conspiracy to commit securities, mail and wire fraud, violating securities regulation laws and obstruction of justice.

|Criminal Activity, Fraud, Green Technology|

Tyson Foods charged with violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) today charged Tyson Foods Inc. with violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) by making illicit payments to two Mexican government veterinarians responsible for certifying its Mexican subsidiary’s chicken products for export sales.

The SEC alleged that Tyson de Mexico concealed the improper payments by putting two veterinarians’ wives on its payroll but they performed no work for the company. The spouses were later removed from the payroll and their payments were processed with invoices issued for “services.” Tyson de Mexico paid the veterinarians, who were responsible for certifying Tyson’s chicken products for export and served as official Mexican government veterinarians at Tyson facilities, a total of $100,311. It was not until two years after Tyson Foods officials first learned about the subsidiary’s illicit payments that its counsel instructed Tyson de Mexico to cease making the payments.

The SEC further charged that in connection with these improper payments, Tyson Foods failed to keep accurate books and records and failed to implement a system of effective internal controls to prevent salary payments to phantom employees and the payment of illicit invoices. The improper payments were recorded as legitimate expenses in Tyson de Mexico’s books and records, and included in Tyson de Mexico’s reported financial results for fiscal years 2004, 2005 and 2006. Tyson de Mexico’s financial results were, in turn, a component of Tyson Foods’ consolidated financial statements filed with the SEC for those years.

Without admitting or denying the SEC’s allegations, Tyson Foods consented to the entry of a final judgment ordering disgorgement plus pre-judgment interest of more than $1.2 million and permanently enjoining it from violating the anti-bribery, books and records, and internal controls provisions of the FCPA. The proposed settlement is subject to court approval.

In a related criminal action announced today, the Department of Justice (DOJ) charged Tyson Foods with conspiring to violate the FCPA and violating the FCPA. The DOJ and Tyson Foods agreed to resolve the charges by entering into a deferred prosecution agreement. Tyson Foods also agreed to pay a $4 million criminal penalty.

|Fraud|

Fraudulent credentials rampant in China

Media sources report that scholars in China say that fraud in education and scientific research, and faking credentials to get work or advance in careers is staggering. With frequent news of falsified resumes by prominent officials and company heads, employers in the country have adopted stricter background checks of job candidates.

According to news reports, Fang Zhouzi, known for exposing plagiarism and academic fraud in China, said that Tang Jun, who was president of Microsoft’s China operations from 2002 to 2004, had falsely claimed in his autobiography that he earned a doctorate degree from the California Institute of Technology, when in fact, the degree was bought from California-based Pacific Western University, known as a “diploma mill.” The scandal was later dubbed the “fake credentials gate” by Chinese media.

Several media publications also brought up the case of Zhang Wuben, who through television shows, DVDs and a best-selling book, convinced millions of people that raw eggplant and immense quantities of mung beans could cure lupus, diabetes, depression and cancer. Zhung’s patient consultations, for which he charged $450 for ten minutes, were booked solid through 2012. But when Chinese journalists dug deeper into Zhung’s background, they learned that contrary to his claims, Zhung was not from a long line of doctors (his father was a weaver) nor did he earn a degree from Beijing Medical University. His only formal education was a correspondence course that he took after losing his job at a textile mill.

The exposure of Zhang’s fake credentials gained media focus and started a new round of scrutiny into the dishonest practices that plague Chinese society, and the Chinese government has vowed to address the problem. To facilitate employers’ checks of their job candidates, the China’s Ministry of Education released a list of approved Chinese-foreign jointly-run schools and a list of overseas colleges. And employers now have a greater awareness of the value of background investigations. Zhu Shibo, manager of recruitment at the China International Intellectech Corporation, one of the country’s leading human resources service providers, told media sources that the company has received unprecedented commissions to investigate job applicants. A typical background investigation includes highest education verification, employment experience confirmation and criminal record searches.

|Asia, Employment Decisions, Fraud|

FBI arrests lecturer for lying about credentials

Various media sources reported last week that the FBI arrested William G. Hillar, 66, who for a decade posed as a retired Green Berets colonel with wide-ranging military expertise and established himself as a lecturer, workshop leader and trainer in the public and private sectors. Hillar was charged in the U.S. District Court in Maryland with one count of mail fraud for payment he received from the Monterey Institute of International Studies in July 2010, according to published reports. He faces a maximum prison sentence of 20 years if convicted. News reports quoted U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein saying that “Hillar was living a lie and based his entire career on experiences he did not have and credentials he did not earn. He was never a colonel, never served in the U.S. Army, never was deployed to exotic locales and never received training in counter-terrorism and psychological warfare.”

Media reports further stated that Hillar’s alleged deception was exposed in November 2010 after several Monterey Institute of International Studies students questioned the authenticity of his military exploits and knowledge of international human trafficking. Their suspicions prompted the Institute to ask Hillar to document his background. But Hillar cut off all communications and took down his “Bill Hillar Training” Web site. Immediately after Hillar became the subject of a criminal investigation, the Institute said it was changing its policy to require full background checks on lecturers and anyone involved in teaching.

According to media reports, Hillar’s client list included approximately 40 agencies and schools across the country, ranging from FBI and army units to local and state police agencies between Idaho and Georgia. Federal officials said evidence shows that Hillar was paid more than $100,000 for teaching and speaking engagements during his facade.

So what was Hillar’s actual military record? News reports said that from 1962 to 1970 he served in the Coast Guard as an enlisted sailor and reached the rank of radarman 3, according to FBI Special Agent David Rodski.

Hillar said he plans to return to teaching once released, according to media reports.

|Fraud|