The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission brought charges against a fellow securities regulator on Friday, claiming that he allowed an alleged Ponzi scheme to flourish and obstructed the SEC’s investigation into the scheme.
The SEC’s allegations relate to the Allen Stanford case, who the commission claims operated a multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme. It charged Stanford, his companies and a couple of executives with securities fraud in a Dallas federal court back on Feb. 17. Those allegations have not been proven.
On Friday, the SEC charged two accountants who produced financial statements for the firms, and it also charged Leroy King, the administrator and CEO of Antigua’s Financial Services Regulatory Commission, alleging that he accepted “thousands of dollars per month in bribes to ignore the Stanford Ponzi scheme and supply Stanford himself with confidential information about the SEC’s investigation.” It also claims that King has obstructed the SEC’s case since 2005, when its investigation into Stanford began. These allegations haven’t been proven either.
The U.S. Department of Justice also announced federal fraud charges against Stanford, Davis, and others; which also haven’t been proven.
“Instead of buying the safe and sound investments he promised his clients, Stanford bought Antigua’s top securities cop,” said Robert Khuzami, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. “While Stanford quarterbacked his massive Ponzi scheme, he paid the referee to spy on the huddles and provide an insider’s play-by-play of the SEC’s investigation.”
SEC charges Caribbean regulator with fraud
Administrator and CEO of Antigua’s Financial Services Regulatory Commission is implicated in Ponzi scheme
- By: James Langton
- June 21, 2009 June 21, 2009
- 15:00