2013-02-04 sec-litreleases litigation_release 68 KB 3,697 chars

SEC v. We The People, Inc., of The United States; Richard K. Olive; Susan L. Olive; and William G. Reeves, Esq., No. LR-22608, Southern District of Florida (Feb. 4, 2013) — Press Release

raw: We The People, Inc., of The United States; Richard K. Olive and Susan L. Olive; William G. Reeves, Esq.

We The People, Inc., of The United States; Richard K. Olive and Susan L. Olive; William G. Reeves, Esq., No. 2:13-cv-14050 (Feb. 4, 2013)

Caption
Securities and Exchange Commission v. We the People, Inc. of the United States
summary

We The People, Inc. and its former executives Richard and Susan Olive orchestrated a $75 million offering fraud scheme targeting senior citizens, resulting in settled actions and charges of violating the Securities Act and Exchange Act.

paragraph

We The People, Inc., a purported charitable organization, and its former executives Richard and Susan Olive allegedly orchestrated a $75 million offering fraud scheme that targeted approximately 450 investors, mostly senior citizens. The Olives allegedly made false statements and misappropriated investor funds for personal use. The SEC charges the Olives with violating various sections of the Securities Act and Exchange Act, and seeks permanent injunctions, disgorgement, interest, and civil penalties.

narrative

We The People, Inc., a purported charitable organization, and its former executives Richard and Susan Olive allegedly orchestrated a $75 million offering fraud scheme that targeted approximately 450 investors, mostly senior citizens. The Olives allegedly made false statements and misappropriated investor funds for personal use, concealing prior fraud indictments and regulatory sanctions. The SEC charges the Olives with violating various sections of the Securities Act and Exchange Act, including Sections 17(a) of the Securities Act and 10(b) of the Exchange Act. The SEC also settled with the organization and its in-house counsel, William Reeves, who consented to injunctive relief, a five-year suspension from practicing before the SEC, and cooperation in the investigation, without admitting guilt. We The People agreed to a receiver being appointed to safeguard over $60 million in remaining investor assets and to pay disgorgement, while Reeves’ civil penalties remain to be determined. The SEC seeks permanent injunctions, disgorgement, interest, and civil penalties against the Olives.

Enriched metadata

Scheme
advance-fee (80%)
Court
Southern District of Florida
Case No.
2:13-cv-14050
Outcome
settled
Victim loss
$75,000,000
Victims
450
Entity
We The People, Inc., of The United States
Classified advance-fee(confidence 80%). No EDGAR filing fingerprint (criminal/DOJ-side scheme). detection rule →
Parties
Securities and Exchange CommissionWe the People, Inc. of the United StatesRichard K. OliveSusan L. OliveWilliam G. Reeves, Esq.
Keywords
peoplesecurities exchangecommissionolivesecuritiessusan olivereevesexchangerichard olivewilliam reevesexchange commissionsections securitiesagainstolivesolive susan

Extracted insights

Dollar amounts 2
  • $75.00M $75 million $10M–$100M
  • $60.00M $60 million $10M–$100M
Entities 5
  • person Richard K. Olive
  • agency Securities and Exchange Commission
  • person Susan L. Olive
  • organization We The People, Inc.
  • person William G. Reeves, Esq.
Triples 1
  • SEC charges We The People, Inc., of The United States; Richard K. Olive; Susan L. Olive; William G. Reeves, Esq. in an offering fraud scheme
View original SEC litigation releasesec.gov
Extracted body text (3,697c)
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 22608 / February 4, 2013 Securities and Exchange Commission v. We The People, Inc., of The United States; Richard K. Olive and Susan L. Olive; William G. Reeves, Esq., Civil Action No. 2:13-cv-14050; 2:13-civ-14047; 2:13-cv-14048 SEC Charges We The People, Inc., of The United States and Three Individuals In Offering Fraud Scheme On February 4, 2013, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed complaints in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in connection with an offering fraud conducted by We The People, Inc. of the United States ("We The People"), a purported charitable organization based in Tallahassee, Florida. In its complaint against Richard Olive, We The People's former chief of program services, and Susan Olive, We The People's former chief of finance and administration, the Commission alleges that the Olives, husband and wife, orchestrated a fraudulent scheme that raised more than $75 million from approximately 450 investors located across the United States, most of whom were senior citizens. Investors were solicited to transfer assets to We The People in exchange for what it called a charitable gift annuity. The Commission alleges that We The People â€" through the Olives â€" lured investors by making various false and misleading statements regarding, among other things, the value of the products sold and the safety and security of the investments. The complaint also alleges that the Olives failed to disclose to investors indictments and regulatory sanctions issued against them for fraudulently selling similar products. In addition to the misrepresentations, the Commission alleges that the Olives misappropriated investor funds for personal use. The complaint alleges that, based on this conduct, Richard and Susan Olive violated, or aided and abetted the violation of, Sections 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 ("Securities Act"), and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Exchange Act") and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. The complaint also claims that the Olives violated Sections 5(a) and 5(c) of the Securities Act, and Section 15(a) of the Exchange Act. The Commission seeks that the Olives be permanently enjoined, and be ordered to pay disgorgement plus pre- and post-judgment interest, and third-tier civil money penalties. In addition, the Commission filed settled actions against We The People and William Reeves, We The People's in-house counsel. Without admitting or denying the Commission's allegations, We The People consented to a final judgment providing injunctive relief under Sections 5(a), 5(c) and 17(a) of the Securities Act, and Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, disgorgement, and the appointment of a receiver to protect the more than $60 million of investor assets still held by We The People. Without admitting or denying the Commission's allegations, Reeves consented to a final judgment providing injunctive relief under Sections 5(a), 5(c), 17(a)(2) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities Act, and providing that the Court will determine issues relating to the imposition of a civil money penalty against him at a later date. Reeves also agreed to a suspension from appearing or practicing before the Commission as an attorney, with the right to apply for reinstatement after 5 years. Reeves entered into a cooperation agreement with the Commission, and the terms of his settlement reflect his assistance in the Commission's investigation and anticipated cooperation in its pending enforcement action. Complaints SEC complaint against the Olives SEC complaint against We The People SEC complaint against Reeves
OCR text (3,697c · html-text · 99% conf)
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 22608 / February 4, 2013 Securities and Exchange Commission v. We The People, Inc., of The United States; Richard K. Olive and Susan L. Olive; William G. Reeves, Esq., Civil Action No. 2:13-cv-14050; 2:13-civ-14047; 2:13-cv-14048 SEC Charges We The People, Inc., of The United States and Three Individuals In Offering Fraud Scheme On February 4, 2013, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed complaints in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in connection with an offering fraud conducted by We The People, Inc. of the United States ("We The People"), a purported charitable organization based in Tallahassee, Florida. In its complaint against Richard Olive, We The People's former chief of program services, and Susan Olive, We The People's former chief of finance and administration, the Commission alleges that the Olives, husband and wife, orchestrated a fraudulent scheme that raised more than $75 million from approximately 450 investors located across the United States, most of whom were senior citizens. Investors were solicited to transfer assets to We The People in exchange for what it called a charitable gift annuity. The Commission alleges that We The People â€" through the Olives â€" lured investors by making various false and misleading statements regarding, among other things, the value of the products sold and the safety and security of the investments. The complaint also alleges that the Olives failed to disclose to investors indictments and regulatory sanctions issued against them for fraudulently selling similar products. In addition to the misrepresentations, the Commission alleges that the Olives misappropriated investor funds for personal use. The complaint alleges that, based on this conduct, Richard and Susan Olive violated, or aided and abetted the violation of, Sections 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 ("Securities Act"), and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Exchange Act") and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. The complaint also claims that the Olives violated Sections 5(a) and 5(c) of the Securities Act, and Section 15(a) of the Exchange Act. The Commission seeks that the Olives be permanently enjoined, and be ordered to pay disgorgement plus pre- and post-judgment interest, and third-tier civil money penalties. In addition, the Commission filed settled actions against We The People and William Reeves, We The People's in-house counsel. Without admitting or denying the Commission's allegations, We The People consented to a final judgment providing injunctive relief under Sections 5(a), 5(c) and 17(a) of the Securities Act, and Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, disgorgement, and the appointment of a receiver to protect the more than $60 million of investor assets still held by We The People. Without admitting or denying the Commission's allegations, Reeves consented to a final judgment providing injunctive relief under Sections 5(a), 5(c), 17(a)(2) and 17(a)(3) of the Securities Act, and providing that the Court will determine issues relating to the imposition of a civil money penalty against him at a later date. Reeves also agreed to a suspension from appearing or practicing before the Commission as an attorney, with the right to apply for reinstatement after 5 years. Reeves entered into a cooperation agreement with the Commission, and the terms of his settlement reflect his assistance in the Commission's investigation and anticipated cooperation in its pending enforcement action. Complaints SEC complaint against the Olives SEC complaint against We The People SEC complaint against Reeves