SEC Press press_release 6 KB 2,687 chars

SEC Files Emergency Action to Freeze Proceeds of Alleged Insider Trading in Reebok Securities

Release: 2005-109

summary

Croatian national Sonja Anticevic allegedly engaged in illegal insider trading by purchasing 1,997 out-of-the-money Reebok call options before its Aug. 3, 2005, acquisition announcement by adidas-Salomon AG, realizing over $2.04 million in profits and attempting to wire $870,000 to Austria, prompting the SEC to freeze her assets and sue for violations of Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5.

paragraph

The SEC accused Sonja Anticevic, a Croatian national, of insider trading in Reebok International Ltd. securities after her account purchased 1,997 out-of-the-money call options on August 1–2, 2005, just before Reebok announced its acquisition by adidas-Salomon AG. Following a 30% stock price surge, she sold the options for over $2.04 million in profits and attempted to transfer $870,000 to a bank account in Salzburg, Austria. The SEC filed an emergency lawsuit in the Southern District of New York, charging her with violating Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5, and obtained a temporary restraining order to freeze the proceeds, seeking permanent injunctions, disgorgement of all gains, and civil penalties.

narrative

The SEC filed an emergency federal lawsuit against Sonja Anticevic, a Croatian national, alleging she engaged in illegal insider trading by purchasing 1,997 out-of-the-money call options on Reebok International Ltd. stock on August 1 and 2, 2005, just prior to the company’s public announcement on August 3 that it would be acquired by adidas-Salomon AG. After the acquisition news triggered a more than 30% spike in Reebok’s stock price, Anticevic sold all the options, realizing over $2.04 million in illicit profits. Shortly after the sale, she attempted to wire $870,000 of those proceeds to a bank account in Salzburg, Austria, raising immediate red flags for the SEC. Acting on the Commission’s request, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York issued a temporary restraining order to freeze all proceeds from the trades and prevent their movement overseas. The SEC charged Anticevic with violating Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5, which prohibit fraudulent and deceptive practices in connection with securities transactions. The Commission is seeking permanent injunctive relief, full disgorgement of the $2.04 million in illegal profits, and civil monetary penalties to deter future market manipulation. Director Mark K. Schonfeld emphasized the SEC’s commitment to swiftly acting against attempts to move ill-gotten gains beyond the reach of U.S. courts, underscoring the case’s significance in protecting market integrity.

Enriched metadata

Scheme: insider-trading (100%)
Court: Southern District of New York
Victim loss: $870,000

Classified insider-trading(confidence 100%). EDGAR detection: forms 4/3/5/144· recall 81% / precision 19%. detection rule →

Extracted insights

Dollar amounts 2

$2.04M $2.04 million $1M–$10M
$870K $870,000 $100K–$1M

Entities 5

person anticevic account
person brokerage firm
person mark k. schonfeld
person temporary restraining order
court united states district court for the southern district of new york

Triples 10

Securities and Exchange Commission Obtained Temporary Restraining Order
Securities and Exchange Commission Alleges A securities account in Anticevic's name engaged in a series of highly suspicious, and highly profitable, trades in 'out of the money' call options of Reebok International Ltd.
Anticevic account Purchased A total of at least 1,997 'out of the money' call option contracts for the common stock of Reebok
Anticevic account Sold All of the call options after the price rise
Anticevic account Realized profits Of over $2.04 million
Brokerage firm Received A wire instruction request to transfer approximately $870,000 of the proceeds from the Reebok trades to a bank account maintained in Salzburg, Austria
United States District Court for the Southern District of New York Issued A temporary restraining order which freezes the proceeds of the highly suspicious Reebok trades to prevent the movement of those funds outside of the United States
Mark K. Schonfeld Said We responded immediately to an attempt to move ill-gotten funds overseas and beyond the reach of U.S. Courts
Commission Alleges Anticevic engaged in illegal insider trading in violation of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5
Complaint Seeks Permanent injunctive relief, the disgorgement of all illegal profits, and the imposition of civil monetary penalties

View original SEC press releasesec.gov

Extracted body text (2,687c)

SEC FILES EMERGENCY ACTION TO FREEZE PROCEEDS OF ALLEGED INSIDER TRADING IN REEBOK SECURITIES FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 2005-109 Washington, D.C., Aug. 5, 2005 - In an emergency federal court action filed today, the Securities and Exchange Commission obtained a Temporary Restraining Order against Sonja Anticevic, a Croatian national and resident. The Commission alleges that a securities account in Anticevic's name engaged in a series of highly suspicious, and highly profitable, trades in "out of the money" call options of Reebok International Ltd. just prior to Reebok's Aug. 3, 2005, announcement that it had agreed to be acquired by adidas-Salomon AG. The Commission's complaint alleges that on Aug. 1 and 2, 2005, the Anticevic account purchased a total of at least 1,997 "out of the money" call option contracts for the common stock of Reebok. Following the acquisition announcement on Aug. 3, 2005, the price of Reebok's common stock rose more than 30 percent from its closing price the prior day. The Anticevic account sold all of the call options after the price rise, realizing profits of over $2.04 million. Also on August 3, shortly after the sale of the options contracts, the brokerage firm received a wire instruction request to transfer approximately $870,000 of the proceeds from the Reebok trades to a bank account maintained in Salzburg, Austria. Acting on the Commission's request for emergency relief, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York today issued a temporary restraining order which, among other things, freezes the proceeds of the highly suspicious Reebok trades to prevent the movement of those funds outside of the United States. Mark K. Schonfeld, the Director of the Commission's Northeast Regional Office, said, "We responded immediately to an attempt to move ill-gotten funds overseas and beyond the reach of U.S. Courts. We will take swift measures against those who seek to diminish the integrity of our markets." In the pending lawsuit, the Commission alleges that Anticevic engaged in illegal insider trading in violation of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5. The complaint seeks permanent injunctive relief, the disgorgement of all illegal profits, and the imposition of civil monetary penalties. See also: Litigation Release For further information contact: Mark K. Schonfeld Director, Northeast Regional Office 212-336-1020 David Rosenfeld Associate Regional Director, Northeast Regional Office 212-336-0153 David A. Markowitz Assistant Regional Director, Northeast Regional Office 212-336-0128 http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2005-109.htm Home | Previous Page Modified: 08/05/2005

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