A nine-count indictment was unsealed this morning in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, against 14 defendants: Jeffrey Chartier, Stephanie Lee, Lawrence Isen and Robert Gleckman, insiders and marketers of five publicly traded companies whose stock the defendants manipulated; Erik Matz and Ronald Hardy, managers of My Street Research and its predecessors (the “Boiler Room”); Brian Heepke, Dennis Verderosa, Emin L. Cohen, Paul Ewer, McArthur Jean, and Sergio Ramirez, Boiler Room cold-callers; Anthony Vassallo, owner of Elite Stock Research (“ESR”); and Robert Gilbert, owner of Accredited Investor Preview (“AIP”).[1]
The charges include conspiracy to commit securities fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and substantive securities fraud in connection with the stock manipulation of five publicly traded companies – National Waste Management Holdings, Inc., trading under the ticker symbol NWMH; CES Synergies, Inc., trading under the ticker symbol CESX; Grilled Cheese Truck, trading under the ticker symbol GRLD; Hydrocarb Energy Corporation, trading under the ticker symbol HECC; and Intelligent Content Enterprises, Inc., trading under the ticker symbol ICEIF. In addition, the government restrained Matz’s residence in Mt. Sinai, New York, Isen’s residence in San Diego, California, and a co-conspirator’s residence in Hicksville, New York, and seized bank accounts containing alleged criminal proceeds and automobiles purchased with alleged criminal proceeds.
Matz, Hardy, Heepke, Verderosa, Cohen, Ewer, Jean, Ramirez, Vassallo, and Gilbert will be arraigned this afternoon before Magistrate Judge Robert M. Levy, at the United States Courthouse in Brooklyn. Chartier’s and Gleckman’s initial appearance for removal proceedings to the Eastern District of New York is scheduled for this afternoon at the United States Courthouse, 312 North Spring Street, Los Angeles, California. Lee’s initial appearance for removal proceedings to the Eastern District of New York is scheduled for this afternoon at the United States Courthouse, 801 North Florida Avenue, Tampa, Florida. Isen’s initial appearance for removal proceedings to the Eastern District of New York is scheduled for this afternoon at the United States Courthouse, 333 W. Broadway, San Diego, California.
The indictment was announced by Bridget M. Rohde, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI).
“As alleged, the defendants designed an elaborate, fraudulent scheme, to defraud the investing public, preying, in particular, upon unsuspecting and elderly investors. Specifically, the defendants obtained shares from corporate insiders at below-market prices and engaged in manipulative trading patterns to drive up the price of the shares, while aggressively and repeatedly calling and emailing victims to purchase those shares,” stated Acting United States Attorney Rohde. “Today’s 14 arrests, in three states, reflect the scope of this fraud and our commitment to aggressively locating and bringing to justice those who abuse our financial markets in order to fraudulently enrich themselves.” Ms. Rohde expressed her grateful appreciation to the FBI and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission for their significant cooperation and assistance in the investigation.
“Manipulating stock prices, as alleged in this case, to appear more attractive to investors, is a deliberate attempt at sabotaging fair market trading,” stated Assistant Director-in-Charge Sweeney. “And manipulation, at its core, is a true act of deception, especially when the elderly are targeted. This scheme involved an incredible amount of money, more than $147 million. That's no small change for even the savviest investor. As evidenced by our arrests today, we take these matters seriously, and will continue to pursue those who make victims out of unwitting participants in these schemes.”
