Labor & Employment Law

Florida Judge orders former CEO to pay $9.95 Million for Penny Stock fraud

By Dobin & Jenks

A Florida Judge orderered former Pinnacle Business Management, Inc Chairman, Jeffrey G. Turrino to pay $9.95 Million and permanently banned him from Penny Stock Offerings.

The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that, Judge Elizabeth A. Kovachevich, United States District Judge for the Middle District of Florida, entered an order of civil contempt against defendant Jeffrey G. Turino.

In her ruling, Judge Kovachevich found that Turino acted in flagrant and repeated contempt of the penny stock bar back from December 2003. This was in connection with a previous Commission enforcement action stemming back from May 2002. In that action, the Commission alleged that Turino, one of his associates, and the penny stock company they operated, Pinnacle Business Management, Inc., had committed securities fraud by making materially false and misleading statements about Pinnacle?s business operations. This action was settled by Turino with a civil penalty of $60,000, consent to a permanent fraud injunction, and a penny stock bar for five years.

Financial Services Director, Attorney Marc Dobin made the following comments regarding this case:

This demonstrates two things: Some leopards don't change their spots (or pay attention to what the judges say) and that no matter how many times you tell the investing public to be careful with their money, they will still listen to a good story from a con man and give them their hard-earned money.

To learn more on the case, click on the following link from the SEC website regarding: Securities and Exchange Commission v. Pinnacle Business Management.

Full post as published by The Law Planet Blog on June 22, 2009 (boomark / email).