2019-06-20 sec-litreleases litigation_release 66 KB 2,997 chars

SEC v. Anatoly Hurgin; Alexander Aurovsky; Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd.; and Ability Inc., No. LR-24505, Southern District of New York (June 20, 2019) — Press Release

raw: Anatoly Hurgin, Alexander Aurovsky, Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd., and Ability Inc.

Anatoly Hurgin, Alexander Aurovsky, Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd., and Ability Inc., No. LR-24505 (S.D.N.Y. June 20, 2019)

Caption
SEC v. Anatoly Hurgin, et al.
summary

Ability Inc., its subsidiary, CEO Anatoly Hurgin, and CTO Alexander Aurovsky allegedly defrauded shareholders of Cambridge Capital Acquisition Corp. in a 2015 merger, resulting in Ability receiving $19 million and the executives receiving millions in put options.

paragraph

The SEC charged Ability Inc., its subsidiary, CEO Anatoly Hurgin, and CTO Alexander Aurovsky with defrauding shareholders of Cambridge Capital Acquisition Corp. in a December 2015 merger. The defendants allegedly fabricated key business metrics, including a non-existent product and inflated order backlog from a Latin American police agency. Ability received $19 million, while Hurgin and Aurovsky each received $9 million and $6 million in put options, respectively.

narrative

The SEC charged Ability Inc., its subsidiary, CEO Anatoly Hurgin, and CTO Alexander Aurovsky with defrauding shareholders of Cambridge Capital Acquisition Corp. in a December 2015 merger. The defendants allegedly fabricated key business metrics, including a non-existent 'game-changing' product (ULIN), inflated order backlog from a Latin American police agency, and false future pipeline projections. Ability received $19 million in the merger, while Hurgin and Aurovsky each received millions in put options, with Hurgin receiving $9 million and Aurovsky receiving $6 million. The alleged fraud involved lying about Ability's business prospects to convince shareholders to vote in favor of the merger. The defendants' actions were intended to secure shareholder approval and reap financial benefits. The SEC's charges highlight the importance of truthful disclosure in mergers and acquisitions. The case serves as a reminder of the consequences of fraudulent activities in the corporate world.

Enriched metadata

Scheme
corporate-fraud (95%)
Court
Southern District of New York
Victim loss
$19,000,000
Entity
Ability Inc.
CIK
0001652866
Classified corporate-fraud(confidence 95%). EDGAR detection: forms 10-K/10-Q/8-K· recall 56% / precision 8%. detection rule →
Statutes
Section 17(a) of the Securities ActSections 10(b) and 14(a) of the Securities Exchange ActSections 10(b) and 14(a) of the Securities Exchange ActSections 17(a)(2) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities ActSections 17(a)(2) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities ActRule 14a-9
Parties
Securities and Exchange CommissionAnatoly HurginAlexander AurovskyAbility Computer & Software Industries Ltd.Ability Inc.
Keywords
abilityhurginanatoly hurginaurovskymergersecuritiesshareholdershurgin alexanderalexander aurovskyaurovsky abilityability computercomputer softwaresoftware industriessecurities exchangespac

Exhibits & Attached Documents (2)

Extracted insights

Dollar amounts 4
  • $60.00M $60 million $10M–$100M
  • $19.00M $19 million $10M–$100M
  • $9.00M $9 million $1M–$10M
  • $6.00M $6 million $1M–$10M
Entities 7
  • company ability computer & software industries ltd.
  • company ability inc.
  • person alexander aurovsky
  • person anatoly hurgin
  • person defrauding merger investors
  • company intelligence communications company
  • person top executive
Triples 31
  • SEC charged Ability Inc.
  • SEC charged Anatoly Hurgin
  • SEC charged Alexander Aurovsky
  • SEC charged Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd.
  • Ability Inc. is intelligence communications company
  • Ability Inc. is Israel-based
  • Ability Inc. is wholly-owned subsidiary
  • Anatoly Hurgin is Top Executive
  • Alexander Aurovsky is Top Executive
  • Ability Inc. charged with Defrauding Merger Investors
  • Anatoly Hurgin charged with Defrauding Merger Investors
  • Alexander Aurovsky charged with Defrauding Merger Investors
  • Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd. charged with Defrauding Merger Investors
  • SEC charged Ability Inc., an Israel-based intelligence communications company, its wholly-owned subsidiary, Anatoly Hurgin, and Alexander Aurovsky with defrauding merger investors
  • SEC charged Ability Inc., Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd., Anatoly Hurgin, and Alexander Aurovsky
  • Ability Inc. defrauded merger investors
  • Anatoly Hurgin was charged with defrauding merger investors
  • Alexander Aurovsky was charged with defrauding merger investors
  • Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd. was charged with defrauding merger investors
  • SEC filed lawsuit against Ability Inc., Anatoly Hurgin, Alexander Aurovsky, and Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd.
  • SEC announced charges on June 20, 2019
  • SEC charges Intelligence Communications Company and Top Executives with defrauding merger investors
  • SEC charged Ability Inc.
  • Anatoly Hurgin, Alexander Aurovsky, Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd., and Ability Inc. are defendants in Securities and Exchange Commission v. Anatoly Hurgel, Alexander Aurovsky, Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd., and Ability Inc.
  • Anatoly Hurgin charged with defrauding merger investors
  • Alexander Aurovsky charged with defrauding merger investors
  • Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd. charged with defrauding merger investors
  • Ability Inc. charged with defrauding merger investors
  • SEC filed litigation release No. 24505
  • SEC charged Ability Inc. and top executives
  • Anatoly Hurgin, Alexander Aurovsky, Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd., and Ability Inc. filed No. 19-civ-05705 (SDNY)
PDF (from attached: complaint)
Text layers
Extracted body text (2,997c)
SEC Charges Intelligence Communications Company and Top Executives with Defrauding Merger Investors Litigation Release No. 24505 / June 20, 2019 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Anatoly Hurgin, Alexander Aurovsky, Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd., and Ability Inc., No. 19-civ-05705 (SDNY), filed June 18, 2019 The SEC on Tuesday charged Ability Inc., an Israel-based intelligence communications company, its wholly-owned subsidiary, and two of its top executives with defrauding shareholders of a Florida-based special purpose acquisition company, or "SPAC," a company formed to raise capital for a merger or acquisition within a set timeframe. The SEC's complaint, filed in federal district court in Manhattan, alleges that Ability, CEO Anatoly Hurgin, and chief technology officer Alexander Vladimir Aurovsky, defrauded SPAC shareholders who voted in favor of a merger between Ability and the SPAC, Cambridge Capital Acquisition Corp., in December 2015. According to the complaint, if Cambridge had not consummated a merger by December 2015, it would have been required, without an extension of the SPAC term, to return all of the capital to its shareholders. To convince shareholders to vote in favor of the merger proposal, the defendants allegedly lied to SPAC shareholders about Ability's business prospects, including Ability's purported ownership of a new "game-changing" cellular interception product, ULIN, Ability's so-called backlog of orders from its largest customer, a police agency in Latin America, Ability's lack of actual purchase orders backing its backlog, and Ability's pipeline of possible future orders from customers. As alleged in the complaint, Ability and the two executives profited from the merger, with Ability receiving approximately $19 million, and Hurgin and Aurovsky each receiving approximately $9 million, plus $6 million each in put options, while Cambridge shareholders lost $60 million. The SEC's complaint charges defendants with violations of the antifraud and proxy statement provisions of the federal securities laws. Specifically, the complaint charges Ability and Hurgin with violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 ("Securities Act") and Sections 10(b) and 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Exchange Act"), and Rules 10b-5 and 14a-9 thereunder, and Aurovsky with violations of Sections 17(a)(2) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities Act and Section 14(a) of the Exchange Act and Rule 14a-9 thereunder. The SEC's complaint seeks permanent injunctions, disgorgement with prejudgment interest, and civil penalties against the defendants, and also seeks an officer and director bar against Hurgin. The SEC's investigation was conducted by Jennifer T. Calabrese and supervised by Ansu N. Banerjee and John W. Berry. The litigation will be conducted by Donald Searles and supervised by Amy J. Longo of the Los Angeles Regional Office. For further information, see Release No. 33-10651 (June 20, 2019) SEC Complaint
OCR text (2,997c · html-text · 99% conf)
SEC Charges Intelligence Communications Company and Top Executives with Defrauding Merger Investors Litigation Release No. 24505 / June 20, 2019 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Anatoly Hurgin, Alexander Aurovsky, Ability Computer & Software Industries Ltd., and Ability Inc., No. 19-civ-05705 (SDNY), filed June 18, 2019 The SEC on Tuesday charged Ability Inc., an Israel-based intelligence communications company, its wholly-owned subsidiary, and two of its top executives with defrauding shareholders of a Florida-based special purpose acquisition company, or "SPAC," a company formed to raise capital for a merger or acquisition within a set timeframe. The SEC's complaint, filed in federal district court in Manhattan, alleges that Ability, CEO Anatoly Hurgin, and chief technology officer Alexander Vladimir Aurovsky, defrauded SPAC shareholders who voted in favor of a merger between Ability and the SPAC, Cambridge Capital Acquisition Corp., in December 2015. According to the complaint, if Cambridge had not consummated a merger by December 2015, it would have been required, without an extension of the SPAC term, to return all of the capital to its shareholders. To convince shareholders to vote in favor of the merger proposal, the defendants allegedly lied to SPAC shareholders about Ability's business prospects, including Ability's purported ownership of a new "game-changing" cellular interception product, ULIN, Ability's so-called backlog of orders from its largest customer, a police agency in Latin America, Ability's lack of actual purchase orders backing its backlog, and Ability's pipeline of possible future orders from customers. As alleged in the complaint, Ability and the two executives profited from the merger, with Ability receiving approximately $19 million, and Hurgin and Aurovsky each receiving approximately $9 million, plus $6 million each in put options, while Cambridge shareholders lost $60 million. The SEC's complaint charges defendants with violations of the antifraud and proxy statement provisions of the federal securities laws. Specifically, the complaint charges Ability and Hurgin with violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 ("Securities Act") and Sections 10(b) and 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Exchange Act"), and Rules 10b-5 and 14a-9 thereunder, and Aurovsky with violations of Sections 17(a)(2) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities Act and Section 14(a) of the Exchange Act and Rule 14a-9 thereunder. The SEC's complaint seeks permanent injunctions, disgorgement with prejudgment interest, and civil penalties against the defendants, and also seeks an officer and director bar against Hurgin. The SEC's investigation was conducted by Jennifer T. Calabrese and supervised by Ansu N. Banerjee and John W. Berry. The litigation will be conducted by Donald Searles and supervised by Amy J. Longo of the Los Angeles Regional Office. For further information, see Release No. 33-10651 (June 20, 2019) SEC Complaint