2021-06-21 sec-litreleases litigation_release 65 KB 2,300 chars

SEC v. Mark A. Miller, No. LR-25118, District of Minnesota (June 21, 2021) — Press Release

raw: Mark A. Miller

Mark A. Miller, No. LR-25118 (June 21, 2021)

Caption
SEC v. Mark A. Miller
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summary

Minnesota resident Mark A. Miller ran a pump‑and‑dump scheme using seven defunct issuers from 2017‑2019, defrauding retail investors and pocketing about $126,000; the SEC has sued him seeking disgorgement, penalties and permanent officer/director bans.

paragraph

Mark A. Miller, a resident of Pequot Lakes, Minnesota, operated a pump‑and‑dump scheme between September 2017 and April 2019 by hijacking at least seven defunct public issuers, filing false SEC and state documents, and issuing misleading press releases and social‑media posts to inflate stock prices. The scheme defrauded unsuspecting retail investors and generated roughly $126,000 in illicit profits for Miller. The SEC has charged him with violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b‑5, and is seeking injunctive relief, disgorgement with prejudgment interest, civil penalties, and permanent bans on serving as an officer or director or participating in penny‑stock offerings.

narrative

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil action against Mark A. Miller, a resident of Pequot Lakes, Minnesota, accusing him of orchestrating a pump‑and‑dump scheme from September 2017 through April 2019. Miller allegedly hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers, purchased their shares on the open market, and used false SEC filings, false state documents, and fabricated press releases to revive the companies. He also coordinated the reposting of these false materials on social media to artificially inflate the issuers' stock prices. Retail investors bought the overvalued securities, allowing Miller to sell his holdings and reap approximately $126,000 in profits. The complaint alleges violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and Rule 10b‑5. The SEC seeks injunctive relief, disgorgement with prejudgment interest, civil penalties, and permanent bars preventing Miller from serving as an officer or director of any public company or participating in penny‑stock offerings, and the case remains pending.

Enriched metadata

Scheme
pump-and-dump (100%)
Court
District of Minnesota
Victim loss
$126,000
Entity
Mark A. Miller
Classified pump-and-dump(confidence 100%). EDGAR detection: forms S-8/S-1/424B/8-K· recall 69% / precision 12%. detection rule →
Statutes
Section 17(a) of the Securities ActSection 10(b) of the Securities Exchange ActRule 10b-5
Parties
Securities and Exchange CommissionMark A. Miller
Keywords
millermark millersecuritiessecurities exchangesecfalsemarkminnesotaschemeissuerspump-and-dump schemejune securitiesexchange commissionretail investorsfalse documents

Exhibits & Attached Documents (1)

Extracted insights

Dollar amounts 1
  • $126K $126,000 $100K–$1M
Entities 6
  • scheme_term a pump-and-dump scheme defrauding retail investors
  • scheme_term mark a. miller with running a pump-and-dump scheme
  • person retail investors
  • agency Securities and Exchange Commission
  • agency the securities and exchange commission
  • scheme_term through a pump-and-dump scheme
Triples 45
  • SEC charged Mark A. Miller
  • SEC filed a litigated action charging Mark A. Miller
  • Mark A. Miller defrauding retail investors
  • Mark A. Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers
  • Mark A. Miller defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme
  • Mark A. Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers
  • Securities and Exchange Commission filed a litigated action charging Mark A. Miller with defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme
  • SEC charged Mark A. Miller with running a pump-and-dump scheme
  • SEC filed a litigated action charging Mark A. Miller, a resident of Pequot Lakes, Minnesota, with defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme
  • Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019
  • Mark A. Miller defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme
  • Mark A. Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019
  • Mark A. Miller defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme
  • Mark A. Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019
  • Mark A. Miller defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme
  • Mark A. Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019
  • Securities and Exchange Commission filed a litigated action
  • Securities and Exchange Commission charges Mark A. Miller
  • Mark A. Miller defrauded retail investors
  • Mark A. Miller hijacked defunct public issuers
  • Mark A. Miller controlled defunct public issuers
  • Mark A. Miller purchased shares
  • Mark A. Miller charged with running a pump-and-dump scheme defrauding retail investors
  • Mark A. Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019
  • Mark A. Miller defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme
  • Mark A. Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019
  • Mark A. Miller charged with running a pump-and-dump scheme defrauding retail investors
  • Mark A. Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019
  • Mark A. Miller defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme
  • Mark A. Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019
  • Securities and Exchange Commission filed a litigated action
  • Securities and Exchange Commission charges Mark A. Miller
  • Mark A. Miller defrauded retail investors
  • Mark A. Miller hijacked defunct public issuers
  • Mark A. Miller controlled defunct public issuers
  • Mark A. Miller purchased shares
  • The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a litigated action charging Mark A. Miller
  • Mark A. Miller defrauded retail investors
  • Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019
  • SEC charged Mark A. Miller with running a Pump-And-Dump Scheme
  • SEC filed a litigated action charging Mark A. Miller, a resident of Pequot Lakes, Minnesota, with defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme
  • SEC alleges Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019
  • SEC charged Mark A. Miller with running a pump-and-dump scheme
  • SEC filed a litigated action charging Mark A. Miller, a resident of Pequot Lakes, Minnesota, with defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme
  • Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019
PDF (from attached: complaint)
SEC v. MARK A. MILLER · Source
Text layers
Extracted body text (2,300c) 
SEC Charges Minnesota Man with Running a Pump-And-Dump Scheme Litigation Release No. 25118 / June 21, 2021 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Mark A. Miller, No. 21-cv-01445 (D. Minn. June 18, 2021) The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a litigated action charging Mark A. Miller, a resident of Pequot Lakes, Minnesota, with defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme. According to the SEC's complaint, Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019. The complaint alleges that, over the course of the scheme, Miller purchased shares of the issuers on the open market, made false filings with the SEC and issued false press releases regarding his, or his nominees', alleged role with five of the issuers. The complaint further alleges that Miller filed false documents with the offices of at least three Secretaries of State to reinstate these issuers, and submitted similar false documents to transfer agents and OTC Markets Group, Inc. As alleged, Miller coordinated the reposting of the false information and documents on social media to pump the issuers' stock. According to the complaint, Miller's scheme defrauded unsuspecting retail investors who purchased the respective issuers' securities at inflated prices, while Miller reaped approximately $126,000 in profits from his sales of the issuers' securities. The SEC's complaint, filed in federal court in Minnesota, charges Miller with violating the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. The SEC seeks injunctive relief, disgorgement with prejudgment interest, and a civil penalty, as well as a bar against Miller serving as an officer or director of a public company and a penny stock bar. The SEC's investigation, which is ongoing, was conducted by Raven A. Winters, Kathleen M. Sweeney, Kristine Rodriguez, and Carl Harris, and supervised by Amy S. Cotter of the Chicago Regional Office. Alyssa A. Qualls will lead the litigation. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota, the United States Postal Service, the FBI, and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). SEC Complaint
OCR text (2,300c · html-text · 99% conf) 
SEC Charges Minnesota Man with Running a Pump-And-Dump Scheme Litigation Release No. 25118 / June 21, 2021 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Mark A. Miller, No. 21-cv-01445 (D. Minn. June 18, 2021) The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a litigated action charging Mark A. Miller, a resident of Pequot Lakes, Minnesota, with defrauding retail investors through a pump-and-dump scheme. According to the SEC's complaint, Miller hijacked or controlled at least seven defunct public issuers between September 2017 and April 2019. The complaint alleges that, over the course of the scheme, Miller purchased shares of the issuers on the open market, made false filings with the SEC and issued false press releases regarding his, or his nominees', alleged role with five of the issuers. The complaint further alleges that Miller filed false documents with the offices of at least three Secretaries of State to reinstate these issuers, and submitted similar false documents to transfer agents and OTC Markets Group, Inc. As alleged, Miller coordinated the reposting of the false information and documents on social media to pump the issuers' stock. According to the complaint, Miller's scheme defrauded unsuspecting retail investors who purchased the respective issuers' securities at inflated prices, while Miller reaped approximately $126,000 in profits from his sales of the issuers' securities. The SEC's complaint, filed in federal court in Minnesota, charges Miller with violating the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. The SEC seeks injunctive relief, disgorgement with prejudgment interest, and a civil penalty, as well as a bar against Miller serving as an officer or director of a public company and a penny stock bar. The SEC's investigation, which is ongoing, was conducted by Raven A. Winters, Kathleen M. Sweeney, Kristine Rodriguez, and Carl Harris, and supervised by Amy S. Cotter of the Chicago Regional Office. Alyssa A. Qualls will lead the litigation. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota, the United States Postal Service, the FBI, and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). SEC Complaint

Related documents (1)