2002-08-30 sec-litreleases litigation_release 66 KB 3,446 chars

SEC v. Michael I. Nnebe; Nelson C. Walker; Hildreth J. Fleming, Jr.; Steven S. Bocchino; Daniel M. Coyle, Jr.; and Luis Colon, Jr., No. LR-17706, Southern District of New York (Aug. 30, 2002) — Press Release

raw: Michael I. Nnebe, Nelson C. Walker, Hildreth J. Fleming, Jr., Steven S. Bocchino, Daniel M. Coyle, Jr., and Luis Colon, Jr.

Michael I. Nnebe, Nelson C. Walker, Hildreth J. Fleming, Jr., Steven S. Bocchino, Daniel M. Coyle, Jr., and Luis Colon, Jr., No. LR-17706 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 30, 2002)

Caption: SEC v. Michael I. Nnebe, et al.

Source JSON

summary

Hildreth J. Fleming, Jr., using the alias 'Steve Wilson,' defrauded at least 118 investors of $2 million by cold-calling them with false claims that Fargo Holdings, a shell company, would conduct an IPO, list on major exchanges, and manufacture blue jeans in Honduras, leading to SEC charges for securities fraud and registration violations.

paragraph

The SEC charged Hildreth J. Fleming, Jr., along with four other defendants, in a $2 million fraud scheme involving the unregistered sale of shares in Fargo Holdings, Inc., a shell company with no legitimate operations. Fleming, posing as 'Steve Wilson,' cold-called at least 118 investors between November 1998 and November 1999, falsely claiming Fargo would conduct an IPO, list on the NYSE or NASDAQ, and manufacture blue jeans in Honduras. The SEC alleges violations of Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a) of the Securities Act and Sections 10(b) and 15(a) of the Exchange Act, seeking permanent injunctions, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains with interest, civil penalties, and a ban on penny stock participation.

narrative

The SEC charged Hildreth J. Fleming, Jr., as the fifth defendant in a $2 million fraud scheme involving the unregistered sale of shares in Fargo Holdings, Inc., a shell company with no legitimate business operations. Between November 1998 and November 1999, Fleming used the alias 'Steve Wilson' to cold-call at least 118 investors, falsely claiming Fargo would soon conduct an IPO, be listed on the NYSE or NASDAQ, and manufacture blue jeans in Honduras—all fabricated to induce purchases. The defendants, including Michael I. Nnebe, Nelson C. Walker, Steven S. Bocchino, Daniel M. Coyle, Jr., and relief defendant Luis Colon, Jr., violated Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Sections 10(b) and 15(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, along with Rule 10b-5. The SEC’s amended complaint, filed in the Southern District of New York, seeks permanent injunctions, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains with prejudgment interest, civil penalties, and a ban on all defendants participating in penny stock offerings. The litigation had been stayed pending parallel criminal proceedings, which concluded with Nelson Walker’s guilty plea and Michael Nnebe’s jury conviction, prompting the court to lift the stay in May 2002. Fleming’s role was central to the fraud, as he directly contacted investors with deceptive statements designed to create false confidence in a non-existent company. The case underscores the SEC’s enforcement against fraudulent penny stock schemes targeting unsuspecting retail investors through high-pressure cold-calling tactics.

Enriched metadata

Scheme: boiler-room (90%)
Court: Southern District of New York
Outcome: charged · 2001-06-12
Victims: 118
Entity: Fargo Holdings, Inc.

Classified boiler-room(confidence 90%). EDGAR detection: forms Form D· recall 50% / precision 4%. detection rule →

Extracted insights

Dollar amounts 1

$2.00M $2 million $1M–$10M

Entities 2

agency Securities and Exchange Commission
court the district court

Triples 9

Securities and Exchange Commission Charges Hildreth J. Fleming, Jr.
Fleming Induced Investors to purchase Fargo stock
Fleming Made statements That Fargo would be conducting an IPO
Fleming Made statements That Fargo would be listed on the New York Stock Exchange or the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation system
Fleming Made statements That Fargo manufactured blue jeans at a plant in Honduras
The Complaint Alleges That Fleming simply made up these statements to induce investors to purchase Fargo stock
The Commission Seeks A final judgment permanently enjoining Fleming from future violations
The Commission Seeks An order prohibiting all of the defendants from participating in an offering of penny stock
The District Court Lifted the stay Of the Commission's injunctive action on May 24, 2002

View original SEC litigation releasesec.gov

Extracted body text (3,446c)

Litigation Release No. 17706 / August 30, 2002 SEC CHARGES FIFTH PERSON IN TWO MILLION DOLLAR UNREGISTERED STOCK SWINDLE Securities and Exchange Commission v. Michael I. Nnebe, Nelson C. Walker, Hildreth J. Fleming, Jr., Steven S. Bocchino, Daniel M. Coyle, Jr., and Luis Colon, Jr., S.D.N.Y., 01 Civ. 5247. The Securities and Exchange Commission ("Commission") today filed an amended complaint in SEC v. Nnebe, et al., 01 Civ. 5247 (KMW) (S.D.N.Y. June 12, 2001), charging a fifth defendant, Hildreth J. Fleming, Jr. ("Fleming"), in what the Commission alleges was the fraudulent, unregistered offering of shares of Fargo Holdings, Inc. ("Fargo"). Fleming, age 29, resides in Staten Island, New York. The amended complaint ("Complaint") also names each of the defendants -- Michael I. Nnebe ("Nnebe"), Nelson C. Walker ("Walker"), Steven S. Bocchino, and Daniel M. Coyle, Jr. -- and the relief defendant -- Luis Colon, Jr. -- who were charged in the Commission's initial Complaint filed on June 12, 2001. The defendants were charged with violations of the antifraud and registration provisions of the federal securities laws, and the relief defendant was charged with receiving proceeds of the fraud. According to the Complaint, Fargo, which purported to be a company providing financial services and blue jeans manufacturing, actually engaged in no legitimate operations at all. The Complaint alleges that the defendants induced the investing public to buy shares of Fargo by making a series of false statements, including that Fargo would be conducting an initial public offering ("IPO"). The Complaint alleges that the defendants defrauded at least 118 investors of at least $2 million. As to Fleming, the Complaint alleges that from November 1998 through November 1999, Fleming cold called investors using the alias "Steve Wilson," and induced investors to purchase Fargo stock by making numerous false or misleading statements about Fargo, including that Fargo: (a) would be imminently conducting an IPO which would allow investors to resell their Fargo stock for a substantial profit; (b) would be listed on the New York Stock Exchange or the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation system; and (c) manufactured blue jeans at a plant in Honduras. The Complaint alleges that Fleming simply made up these statements to induce investors to purchase Fargo stock. As a result of the foregoing, the Commission's Complaint charges that Fleming 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 seeks a final judgment permanently enjoining Fleming from future violations, ordering Fleming to disgorge ill-gotten gains plus prejudgment interest, and imposing civil penalties against Fleming. The Complaint also seeks an order prohibiting all of the defendants from participating in an offering of penny stock. The litigation, pending in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, had been stayed pending the completion of parallel criminal proceedings brought by the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York against Walker and Nnebe. Following a guilty plea by Walker and a jury trial conviction against Nnebe, the District Court lifted the stay of the Commission's injunctive action on May 24, 2002. See also: Litigation Release 17034 June 12, 2001.

OCR text (3,446c · plain-text · 99% conf)