SEC Charges Former Directors of Woodbridge Ponzi Scheme with Fraud
The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged two former directors of investments at Woodbridge Group of Companies LLC for their roles in its $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme.
The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged two former directors of investments at Woodbridge Group of Companies LLC for their roles in its $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme. The defendants, California-based Ivan Acevedo and Dane R. Roseman, were separately arrested and charged by criminal authorities, along with Woodbridge owner Robert H. Shapiro.
The SEC previously charged Woodbridge and Shapiro, and Woodbridge’s highest-earning unregistered brokers. In January, a federal court in Florida ordered Woodbridge, related companies, and Shapiro together to pay $1 billion for operating this Ponzi scheme.
According to the SEC’s complaint, although Acevedo and Roseman were not registered in any capacity with the SEC, they were allegedly responsible for fraudulently raising at least $1.2 billion from more than 8,400 retail investors, many of them seniors, and together received more than $3 million in transaction-based and other compensation.
The complaint, filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, alleges that Acevedo oversaw Woodbridge’s fundraising for Woodbridge’s securities from 2012 until his departure in 2015, when he was succeeded by Roseman.
According to the complaint, the defendants were responsible for hiring and training Woodbridge’s sales force, approved fraudulent marketing materials and sales scripts, and helped create the false appearance that Woodbridge was a legitimate operation when in reality it was a Ponzi scheme that used money from new investors to pay existing investors.
“Instead of telling investors the truth – that Woodbridge’s third-party lending business was a sham almost from inception – we allege that Acevedo and Roseman worked diligently to perpetuate this sham by preparing and disseminating false marketing materials to induce more investments, keeping this massive Ponzi scheme afloat,” said Eric Bustillo, director of the SEC’s Miami regional office. “The SEC is committed to continue to hold responsible parties accountable in this far-reaching scheme.”
Woodbridge’ scheme collapsed in typical Ponzi fashion in early December 2017 when the firm stopped paying investors and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The SEC’s complaint charges Acevedo and Roseman with violating the securities registration, broker-dealer registration, and anti-fraud provisions of the federal securities laws, and seeks disgorgement of allegedly ill-gotten gains, with interest, and financial penalties.
