SEC Returns Stolen Money to Investors

Yesterday the Securities and Exchange Commission announced a 100% return of funds to investors who were defrauded by schemes involving Concorde America, Inc. and Absolute Health and Fitness, Inc.

The return of funds is the result of a February 2005 suit in which the SEC accused the two companies and several individuals with related pump-and-dump schemes (a common penny stock scam). At the time, the Commission obtained emergency restraining orders to freeze the defendants’ assets.

The Fair Funds provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 gave the SEC increased authority to distribute ill-gotten gains and monetary civil penalties back to harmed investors. So far the SEC has returned over $4 billion to investors through Fair Fund distributions.

Love it.

The checks for this distributioin will total nearly $3.5 million and go to 1,355 investors who were harmed by the fraudulent promotion of the stock of the two companies.

If you want more information, or beleive you may be entitled to a portion of the funds distributed to investors, see http://www.concordeabsolutehealthfund.com.

Image Credit: Eric Gjerde, Flickr