On September 28, 2011 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published that commission charged a Long Island-based investment adviser with defrauding investors in hedge funds investing in PIPE transactions and misappropriating more than $1 million in client assets for his personal use. The SEC alleges that Corey Ribotsky and his firm The NIR Group LLC repeatedly lied to investors to hide the truth that his PIPE investment and trading strategy was failing during the financial crisis. For example, Ribotsky falsely told investors that despite the adverse market conditions he could liquidate all of the PIPE investments in 36 to 48 months – a practical impossibility given the size of the investments. Meanwhile, Ribotsky misused investor money by writing checks to pay for personal services and such luxury items as a Lexus, Mercedes, and Rolex watch.

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On August 02, 2011 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published that the commission deems it appropriate and in the public interest that public administrative proceedings be, and hereby are, instituted against James E. Pratt (Respondent)pursuant to Rule 102(e)(3)(i) of the Commission’s Rules of Practice. In anticipation of the institution of these proceedings, Respondent has submitted an Offer of Settlement which the Commission has determined to accept.

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On June 22, 2011 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published that on April 7, 2010, the Commission instituted public administrative and cease-and-desist proceedings pursuant to Section 8A of the Securities Act of 1933 Section 21C of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Sections 9(b) and 9(f) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 against Morgan Asset Management, Inc., Morgan Keegan & Company, Inc., James C. Kelsoe.JR.

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On June 22, 2011 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published that the United States District Court for the District of Arizona issued an Order to Show Cause re Civil Contempt against defendants Tom Hirsch, Berta Walder, Howard Walder, and Harish P. Shah for their failure to pay disgorgement and prejudgment interest thereon as required by the Final Judgment of Permanent Injunction and Monetary Relief entered by the Court against the defendants.

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On June 21, 2011 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published that deems it appropriate and in the public interest that public administrative proceedings be, and hereby are, instituted pursuant to Section 15(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against Alvin C. Ramsey (“Respondent”).

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On June 21, 2011 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published that on June 8, 2011, The Honorable Richard J. Sullivan of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, entered a judgment against Gautham Shankar in SEC v. Cutillo et al., 09-CV-9208, an insider trading case the SEC filed on November 5, 2009. The SEC charged Shankar, who was a registered representative and a proprietary trader at the broker-dealer Schottenfeld Group, LLC during the relevant time period, with using inside information to trade ahead of the June 4, 2007 announced acquisition of Avaya Inc. and the September 28, 2007 announced acquisition of 3Com Corp.

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On June 21, 2011 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published that on June 8, 2011, The Honorable Jed S. Rakoff of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York entered a judgment against Gautham Shankar in SEC v. Galleon Management, LP, et al., 09-CV-8811, an insider trading case the SEC filed on October 16, 2009. The SEC charged Shankar, who was a registered representative and a proprietary trader at the brokerdealer Schottenfeld Group, LLC, during the relevant time period, with using inside information to trade ahead of impending acquisitions and earnings announcements.

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On June 21, 2011 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published that on June 20, 2011, it filed an emergency enforcement action in federal district court in Connecticut and obtained a temporary restraining order, asset freeze, and other emergency relief against Florin S. Ilovici, of Avon, Connecticut, in connection with a scheme to defraud investors.

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On June 21, 2011 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published that the SEC brought charges against Edward S. Steffelin, the GSC employee who was in charge of the team responsible for selecting the portfolio for Squared. Steffelin, among other things, permitted Magnetar to select and short collateral and reviewed and edited the termsheet and pitch book before those materials were provided to investors. Also undisclosed in the marketing materials and unbeknownst to investors, Steffelin was seeking employment with Magnetar during the relevant period.

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On June 21, 2011 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) published that commission charged Paul R. Allen, the former chief-executive officer at Taylor, Bean and Whitaker Mortgage Corp. (TBW), on June 17, 2011, which was once the nation’s largest nondepository mortgage lender, with aiding-and-abetting the efforts of TBW’s former chairman, Lee B. Farkas, to defraud the U.S. Treasury’s Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP).

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The Securities and Exchange Commission (Commission) on May 5, 2011 issued its Order Instituting Proceedings (OIP) against Anthony Fareri on March 28, 2011, pursuant to Section 15(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Exchange Act). The OIP alleged that Fareri participated in the price manipulation of two penny stocks, and, as a result, he was enjoined from future violations of various provisions of the Securities Act of 1933 (Securities Act) and the Exchange Act by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

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On May 4, 2011, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued an Order Instituting Administrative Proceedings Pursuant to Section 15(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Making Findings, and Imposing Remedial Sanctions against Paul N. Nicholson. The Order finds that the United States District Court for the Central District of California entered a judgment on April 12, 2011 against Nicholson, permanently enjoining him from future violations of Sections 5 and 17(a) of the Securities Act, Sections 10(b) and 15(a) of the Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5 there under.

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On May 4, 2011, the Securities and Exchange Commission published that the commission issued an Order Instituting Proceedings (OIP) on January 19, 2011, pursuant to Section 15(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Exchange Act). The United States Postal Service return receipt shows that the OIP, sent by certified mail, was delivered to Dale J. Engelhardt (Engelhardt) at 45 Corte Vidriosa, San Clemente, CA 92673, on January 25, 2011.

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The Securities and Exchange Commission on May 4, 2011 charged six former senior executives of Kansas-based Brooke Corporation and its other, publicly-traded subsidiaries, Brooke Capital Corporation, an insurance agency franchisor, and Aleritas Capital Corporation, a lender to insurance agency franchises and other businesses, with conducting an extensive financial and disclosure fraud.

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The Securities and Exchange Commission on May 4, 2011 charged UBS Financial Services Inc. (UBS) with fraudulently rigging at least 100 municipal bond reinvestment transactions in 36 states and generating millions of dollars in ill-gotten gains.

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