SEC Charges New Jersey Group of Stock Promoters in MicroCap Market Manipulation Scheme
Yesterday, the SEC charged a New Jersey-based group of stock promoters with fraud involving the manipulation and artificial inflation of the share price of a microcap company. The scheme grossed over $1 million.
The SEC alleges that James M. Farinella, and his purported consulting firm Integrated Capital Partners, Inc.(ICP), controlled virtually the entire public float of stock in microcap issuer Pazoo, Inc. (OTCPINK: PZOO) Farinella paid Equity Awareness Group (EAG) to promote Pazoo and to engage in matched trading to create the appearance of an active market for Pazoo stock and boost the stock price.
The SEC further alleges that Anthony Amado, an owner of EAG, and Carlo Palomino, an EAG employee, carried out the scheme, enabling Farinella to dump Pazoo shares for over $1 million.
In a parallel action, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey today announced criminal charges against Farinella.
This is the second case this month involving stock promoters from New Jersey. On June 1st, Antonio Katz, a defendant in ongoing SEC litigation, pled guilty to criminal charges filed by the U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts. Katz was charged with one count of conspiracy and one count of securities fraud in connection with a pump-and-dump scheme that defrauded investors in Greenway Technology, a Las Vegas based company purporting to operate resorts catering to gay and lesbian travelers.
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