Finally, the day we have been waiting for and working towards for months has arrived and we can speak more freely about the ProphetMax situation. Today, the SEC and the CFTC filed enforcement cases against Senen Pousa and others for operating a fraudulent scheme in violation of the federal securities and commodities laws.
We believe the government has achieved the right result. We came forward and cooperated with all U.S. and foreign governments to report what we perceived was a fraud and we have spared no expense to help. This is not over yet. We will continue to cooperate with these government agencies and we encourage all of you to do the same. They need additional evidence and if you are contacted please provide any and all information requested.
Through the cooperation and investigative process we have learned many valuable lessons.
The SEC and CFTC looked closely and thoughtfully at substantial amounts of evidence before making decisions on who to name in their complaints and what charges to bring. The SEC determined that they would not include the Elevation Group in the case filed today.
The CFTC’s case has essentially two categeories of defendants. One category, the “fraud Defendants,” includes Senen Pousa, IIC, ProphetMax Managed FX and Joel Friant, against whom the CFTC alleges fraud. The other category, the “Registration Defendants,” includes Mike and the Elevation Group. Even thought we cooperated just as fully with the CFTC, their laws have a technical provision tht says that we should have been registered before telling anyone about Senen or the other Fraud Defendants.
Again, we agree with the decisions of the SEC and CFTC and we agree that the basis for this registration process is valid. Neither the SEC nor the CFTC alleges we participated in any way in the fraud alleged against the Senen Pousa, IIC, ProphetMax Managed FX and Joel Friant. Big day, big lesson and we are all about learning and progressing.
As you have heard me say before, in 2007, I became passionate about money, investing, and the economy thanks to the incredible information put forth by visionaries like Robert Kiyosaki, Michael Maloney, Peter Schiff, James Turk, Kyle Bass, Max Keiser, and many others…
I learned about the private Federal Reserve System, the historic dangers of fiat currencies, the un-payable, record levels of US debt, derivatives, and the secret battle for energy resources being held around the world on a daily basis…
As a result we launched The Elevation Group in 2010 with a singular mission… To empower the middle class with the investing strategies used by the rich to turn times of economic chaos into personal prosperity…
In less than 24 months, more than 40,000 members from all walks of life…. From Baby-Boomers to college students and single moms, Fortune 500 CEO’s, Board of Directors, billionaires, and professional athletes, many have joined our cause… More than 400,000 readers have subscribed to our newsletter in order to stay abreast of global macro-economic events…
The reason why is simple…
We’re telling the truth that most will not, and the strategies I’ve personally invested my own money into and documented have produced an ROI of more than 310% since 2008, despite the fact that I am not a sophisticated investor or financial guru.
After documenting and investing time and money into more than 18 lessons and 1.5 years of solid foundational information and strategies, I finally decided to delve into the world of currency trading (also known as FX or Forex), after noticing a site run by Senen Pousa.
As explained above, lesson learned.
If people want to see the specific allegations of fraud against Senen Pousa, IIC, ProphetMax Managed FX and Joel Friant, we will post conformed copies of the pleadings filed by the government. As of this post, we don’t have copies yet, but we do have a copy of a Statutory Restraining Order that is intended to freeze all assets of defendants Pausa, Friant, and IIC. Neither myself nor The Elevation Group are included in this action.
As described in the government’s complaints, it is a complex and elaborate fraud and we encourage all to read about it. Bloomberg reported on the filing today in a story you can read here.
We can’t relate the whole thing here but when we caught our very first whiff that something might be wrong, we immediately contacted our SEC counsel and flew them down to Austin.
After reviewing an entire history of the events since meeting Senen, it was our legal team’s opinion based on more than 30 years of combined experience, that we needed to comply with our responsibility to contact any and all governmental authorities to alert them to the potential problem.
We immediately contacted the SEC, CFTC, and Australian authorities in order to share all facts and information with them regarding our interactions with Senen, and IB Capital.
During that initial meeting, without being asked, we volunteered to give all sales commissions received from Senen Pousa back to EVG Members immediately. Our company is based on providing value, and there was no way that we would keep a dime from anyone under these circumstances. Legally, this process is called disgorgement, and we’re grateful to the CFTC for their help in this process.
(Updated) The law firm serving as the Receiver has posted a website that will keep all of us who lost money due to this fraud, up to date with their efforts and instructions. Please visit and bookmark this site now:
www.ProphetMaxReceivership.com
Based on Senen’s refusal to provide a credible reason for the massive and sudden losses to Member’s accounts, refusal to accept refunds for his ProphetMax Memberships, and the shutdown of his company Facebook page, we were left with no choice but to launch a Class Action lawsuit of behalf of the EVG followers (including myself), who bought into his program.
Our mission is to recover as many investor funds as possible from the defendants who, as of today, have been accused by the SEC and CFTC of fraud. We are pursuing this case on behalf of those who lost any money , and we are paying all of the costs of the litigation (which has exceeded more than $300,000), and 100% of any money recovered will be disbursed to ProphetMax customers and investors who lost money.
(Updated) If you joined ProphetMax, it is VERY important that you complete the following steps…
- Fill out this questionnaire so I can send you additional details about the Class Action lawsuit…
- Book mark this website and follow the instructions. This site has been created by the appointed Receiver who will be recovering lost investment funds and disbursing to all of us who were affected. www.ProphetMaxReceivership.com
Although we do not have direct information, we are told that the Australian equivalent of the SEC/CFTC, called the ASIC, has also commenced enforcement proceedings against Senen and several of his businesses. We will let you know as we learn more.
I would like to acknowledge the pain and frustration that has been caused by Senen and others working with him in the fraud alleged by the SEC/CFTC today. These alleged fraudsters used our mission to manipulate all of us.
From the moment I started my first business at the age of 26, my reputation has always been, and always will be, my greatest asset.
Having it hi-jacked and taken advantage of for their own financial gain has literally been a sickening process to endure.
It’s times like these when you find out who your true friends and supporters really are, and I would like to thank all of our EVG Advisors and experts for their support during this situation.
You guys could have walked away and tried to distance yourselves from us during this horrible event, but every single one of you has stood tall by our side as a testament to your belief in us…
THANK YOU.
As for what comes next… Well that’s what matters more than anything else…
Each of us has an extremely important choice to make right now… We can be victims of Senen and his pals and let it weaken us, or we can use it as an opportunity to grow stronger and smarter.
It’s not the challenges themselves that determine your direction in life, it’s how you choose to react to them.
We can focus on what’s taken place in the past and remain stuck there, or we can let the past go and focus on the present, and how we can use this new moment to create a better future.
Things like this can “happen to you,” and you can be diminished by them, or things like this can “happen for you,” and you can learn and grow from them.
We have chosen to move forward and grow from this.
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(Updated: 10/28/2012)
Last week the CFTC and SEC asked me to “stay” my class-action suit against Senen Pousa, ProphetMax, IIC, IBCapital, etc…
Basically, this means that they want us to put our case on hold until further notice, in order to make sure our proceedings do not interfere with theirs.
In my opinion, this is welcome news.
I filed this case for one reason… To get back the money everyone lost.
Using authority and abilities beyond those available to us in our civil case, the SEC and CFTC in coordination with multiple other international authorities, including the ASIC ( Australian Financial Authorities), have made great strides in locating and freezing a significant amount of this money over the past month in accounts around the world. (I cannot share an exact amount at this point).
What would have taken us years to accomplish on our own, (while being fought every step along the way by the defendants), has been accomplished by these agencies in weeks and we have done everything in our power to help.
In other words, they are achieving our goal for us, and they are doing it MUCH more effectively than our team ever could.
Given this fact, we have agreed to stay our case as requested.
I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to the SEC, and CFTC for their continued efforts on this matter.
(Updated: 1/31/2012)
I do not have any general updates regarding the prosecution of the case at this time, other than to say the government is moving as quickly as they can to bring justice to the matter. I do know the Receiver has seized a substantial amount of money which will be returned to investors. I expect that will likely happen in 2013. I will obviously pass along any new information as I receive it, and updates will also be posted here, on this page.
Taxes…
A few weeks ago, I asked my CPA Tom Wheelwright to investigate the tax consequences of this situation for everyone involved.
I am happy to report that he has some very good news to share, and I have attached the PDF document he's prepared for us.
Please stay tuned for more updates here…
Mike Dillard
