United States: A man from California has been arrested in connection with his alleged involvement in a sophisticated securities fraud scheme that generally more than $7 million in illicit proceeds.
The 53-year-old Joseph A. Padilla of Carlsbad, California, was charged with one count of securities fraud. Padilla was detained at the Sanr Diego International Airport on August 25, 2022, as well as made an initial appearance in federal court in the Southern District of California on August 26, 2022.
Along with this, he will come into sight in Boston, United States, at a later date.
As per the charging document, Padilla is a one-time stockbroker who was barred from the securities industry in 2012 by the United States Security as well as Exchange Commission.
Padilla is accused of taking part in a complex and profitable pump-and-dump fraud operation between February and April 2021 involving the shares of Charlestowne Premium Beverages Inc., a thinly traded microcap business listed under the stock ticker name FPWM.
Using his brokerage account and the accounts of numerous other people, Padilla is accused of orchestrating the fake inflating (or “pump”) of Charlestowne’s stock price as part of the plan. Then, according to allegations, he helped millions of Charlestowne shares be sold (or “dumped”) at inflated prices to unwary investors in Massachusetts and around the country.”
A term of up to twenty years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $5 million are also included in the securities fraud allegation.
A federal district court judge will impose sentences in accordance with the laws and U.S. Sentencing Guidelines that control how sentences are determined in criminal cases.
Special Agent delivered today’s statement in Charge of the Boston Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Joseph R. Bonavolonta and United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins. The case is being prosecuted by Rollins’ Securities, Financial & Cyber Fraud Unit Assistant U.S. Attorney James R. Drabick.
Allegations are made in the charge document’s specifics. Until and unless the defendant is found guilty in a court of law beyond a reasonable doubt, they are assumed innocent.
