Rapper Who Boasted in Music Video About Committing COVID Fraud Sentenced to Over 6 Years in Prison on Fraud, Gun and Drug Crimes

covid recession
A rapper who boasted in a YouTube music video about getting rich quickly by scamming a COVID relief program was sentenced today to 77 months in federal prison. Fontrell Antonio Baines, 33, a.k.a. “Nuke Bizzle,” of Memphis, Tennessee, was sentenced by United States District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald, who also ordered him to pay $704,760 in restitution to the California...

Murrieta Man Sentenced to 5 Years in Prison for Misusing COVID-Relief Business Loans on Personal Expenses Such as Luxury Cars

covid recession
LOS ANGELES – A Riverside County man was sentenced today to 60 months in federal prison for using hundreds of thousands of dollars from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) for personal expenses such as luxury cars after he obtained a COVID-business relief loan for more than $7 million on behalf of his pothole-repair company. Oumar Sissoko, 59, of Murrieta, was...

Elizabeth Holmes Sentenced To More Than 11 Years For Defrauding Theranos Investors Of Hundreds Of Millions

SAN JOSE – Elizabeth A. Holmes was sentenced today to 135 months (11 years, 3 months) in federal prison for defrauding investors in Theranos, Inc. of hundreds of millions of dollars, announced United States Attorney Stephanie M. Hinds, Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge Robert K. Tripp, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Assistant Commissioner for Criminal Investigations...

SEC Charges Halal Capital Founder with Multimillion Dollar Fraudulent Scheme That Targeted Muslim Community

Washington D.C. — The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged Jebara Igbara, the founder of Halal Capital LLC, in connection with a more than $8 million scheme that targeted investors from the New York metropolitan area’s Muslim community. According to the SEC’s complaint filed in federal court in Brooklyn, Igbara (a.k.a. Jay Mazini) started Halal Capital in October 2019 with...

SEC Charges Mattel with Financial Misstatements and Former PwC Audit Partner with Improper Professional Conduct

Washington D.C. — The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that California-based Mattel Inc. has agreed to pay $3.5 million to settle charges relating to misstatements in its third and fourth quarter 2017 financial statements. Separately, the SEC is initiating litigation against Joshua Abrahams, a former audit partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, or PwC, to determine whether he engaged in...

New Jersey Real Estate Development Firm and Four Executives Charged With $600 Million Ponzi-like Fraud

Washington D.C. — The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged New Jersey-based National Realty Investment Advisors LLC (NRIA) and four of its former executives with running a Ponzi-like scheme that raised approximately $600 million from about 2,000 investors. The SEC’s complaint alleges that beginning in 2018, NRIA and its executives raised funds by promising investors their money would be used...

Kim Kardashian charged for unlawful touting crypto security

Washington D.C. — The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges against Kim Kardashian for touting on social media a crypto asset security offered and sold by EthereumMax without disclosing the payment she received for the promotion. Kardashian agreed to settle the charges, pay $1.26 million in penalties, disgorgement, and interest, and cooperate with the Commission’s ongoing investigation. The SEC’s...

SEC Charges 18 Defendants in International Scheme to Manipulate Stocks Using Hacked US Brokerage Accounts

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged 18 individuals and entities for their roles in a fraudulent scheme in which dozens of online retail brokerage accounts were hacked and improperly used to purchase microcap stocks to manipulate the price and trading volume of those stocks. Those charged include Rahim Mohamed of Alberta, Canada, who is alleged to have coordinated...

South Carolina Man Convicted of COVID-19 Relief Fraud

covid recession
A federal jury in Atlanta convicted a South Carolina man today of fraudulently obtaining a $300,000 forgivable Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Travis Crosby, 32, of Wellford, conspired to submit a PPP loan application...

Hadari Oshri’s meritless legal plan and sloppy PR campaign backfired

Los Angeles (CA) – Probably 2021 was not a year for the books for Hadari Oshri. And things aren't looking up in 2022 either. Last year, the American-Israeli entrepreneur lost her meritless restraining order case against me. My anti-SLAPP court win was a powerful reminder of why First Amendment Rights are celebrated, honored and protected by Americans. And as an...