SEC Strikes at Striker Petroleum for Securities Fraud
The list of private-placements marketed through a network of stockbrokers embroiled in securities fraud litigation continues to grow. This week, the SEC alleged that Striker Petroleum, LLC deceived approximately 540 investors into purchasing $57 million worth of fraudulent debentures. The SEC is alleging that Striker was selling the debentures to pay fixed returns to investors who held interests Legacy oil and gas properties and also to pay off prior debenture holders.
According to a December 7, 2009, article in Investment News the Striker debentures were sold through a nationwide network of stockbrokers, including CapWest Securities. As a result, many of the stockbrokers who sold Striker debentures may have also sold interests in Provident Asset Management and Medical Capital--two infamous private placements that are the focus of SEC and investor lawsuits. As we noted in a recent blog posting on this very subject: Brokers who recommended these investments have a lot of explaining to do.
