On 11 August, SEC charged promoters with oil drilling investments.
- Charged David Greenlee, David Stewart Jr. with orchestrating $15mn scheme
Alleged Violations
- Lured investors by false promises of high returns from oil drilling investments.
- Network of salesmen sold stakes in companies purportedly using innovations.
- Enhanced oil recovery techniques, like fracking to extract and sell oil in wells.
- Investors were allegedly promised profits of 15% to 55% a year, for decades.
- Defendants were not registered and used fake names to hide criminal records.
- Diverted nearly two-thirds of the money to pay themselves and the salesmen.
Salesmen Charged
- Richard “Ric” Underwood alleged to have helped draft false offering brochures.
- Oversaw a boiler room team of telemarketers in Florida, solicited US investors.
Enforcement
- SEC seeks repayment of ill-gotten gains, interest and penalty and injunctions.
- Cited previous investor alert on fraud risks in private offerings for oil-and-gas.
- US Attorney in Georgia criminal charges of Greenlee, Stewart, and Underwood.
