SEC looking at New Names in Barry Honig Pump and Dump Scheme: $MGTI $MBVXQ

The Securities and Exchange Commission is trying to force one of the remaining defendants in the Barry Honig pump and dump scheme to turn over communication or documents that could show others role in the long running scheme. Yesterday the regulator filed a motion to compel against MGT Capital CEO Robert Ladd who refused SEC enforcement attorney Nancy Brown’s demand for documents that relate to Harvey Kesner, Honig’s long time SEC transaction lawyer, and others who invested in the company or are suspected of promoting the company.

Ladd’s attorney Randall Lee of Cooley LLP said Ladd objects to having to produced continued communication with the requested individuals after the SEC filed their initial complaint on September 7, 2018 citing those documents would likely be attorney client privilege. Attorney Harvey Kesner was not named in the original subpoena sent to MGT Capital in September 2016 that sought documents showing Barry Honig and his team were trading as a group of undisclosed affiliates. The news of the SEC investigation into Team Honig was first reported by this journalist at trade publication Growth Capitalist. Kesner has made statements in other court filings and in press reports that he does not think he is under SEC investigation. The new court filing could show otherwise.

The motion also the states the SEC has already collected documents from over 100 individuals and corporations, a move that shows how far reaching the investigation has been. Additionally, the SEC wrote in a letter to Judge Ramos on August 8th that they are currently investigating conduct that is distinct from and occurred after the SEC filed their amended complaint in March 2019. This means more charges could be coming.

Individuals the SEC is currently seeking information about as discovery in the pump and dump ring include:

Tara Guarneri-Ferrara – a partner level attorney that worked with Harvey Kesner at New York-based Sichenzia Ross Ference LLP

Avital Even-Shoshan – an attorney who worked for Harvey Kesner at New York-based Sichenzia Ross Ference LLP. Kesner listed Avital as the managing director of the transfer agent he is believed to have funded called Equity Stock Transfer. She also goes by Avital Perlman.

Jay Kaplowitz – a partner at Sichenzia Ross Ference LLP who was MGT Capital’s deal transaction lawyer. MGT switched counsel after the SEC subpoena was delivered.

Richard Abbe and Josh Silverman of Iroquois Capital – Iroquois was an initial investor in MGT Capital and is believed to have held investments in the company during the alleged stock pump. Iroquois and Josh Silverman were named in the original SEC subpoena to MGT Capital.

Yova Roth, Richard Allison, and George Antonopolous of Hudson Bay Capital – Hudson Bay invested in MGT Capital and is alleged to be part of a scheme to force MabVax to reverse merge into a company Barry Honig controlled.

Drew Ciccarelli – a stock promoter that owned Global Marketing Media who has allegedly been part of paid promotions for Team Honig for years. He owned multiple stock promotion websites (such as www.smallcapleader.com and TSX Ventures LLC) and an investor email database business that was allegedly sold to another promoter Adam Garcia of awesomestocks.com after he saw too many of his clients get charged by the SEC or DOJ, according to a person familiar with Ciccarelli. SmallCapLeader.com and TSX Ventures LLC are named in the discovery request by the SEC. @alldaytrader is Ciccarelli’s current twitter account.

There are additional names the SEC wants info on that Ladd says he likely doesn’t know which you can see in this document. Ladd’s attorney argues that the SEC is actually abusing discovery with these request because they fall outside a statue of limitations.

I was first to report defendants in the Honig Pump and Dump case along with possible others are part of a microcap criminal investigation by the Northern California Department of Justice. Honig recently settled with the SEC and agreed to a bar on penny stock investing. It’s believed he is cooperating with the SEC now as they battle the remaining defendants. Honig could also likely turn evidence over on any of the people named in the recent SEC discovery request.

Update: 6.20.10 8:30pm: After my story ran Ladd’s attorney wrote Judge Ramos a letter calling out the SEC for more questionable tactics. While this publication agrees the SEC moves are questionable as a matter of law at least the SEC is making a rare move to inform the public about others that could be involved in the securities fraud case.

Editors Note: Harvey Kesner has sued me and Bill Alpert at Barron’s for our individual reporting on Kesner’s possible role in the Honig securities fraud scheme in Southern Florida district court. I will be fighting the suit pro se; meaning I will be representing myself. I firmly believe all of my reporting on Kesner is stated with accurate facts or opinion. I believe Kesner’s move is another attempt to get access to my sourcing in the government investigation of his clients or him.