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Court Orders Perpetrator of Oil-and-Gas Fraud to Pay More than $4 Million
Aug. 14, 2017
The SEC obtained a final judgment against Sameer P. Sethi, against whom the SEC previously obtained an asset freeze and appointment of a receiver in connection with fraudulent oil and gas investment offerings. The final judgment, entered on August 7, 2017 by the Honorable Amos L. Mazzant of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, orders Sethi to pay more than $4 million in disgorgement and prejudgment interest and a civil penalty of $160,000. The final judgment also permanently enjoins Sethi from the purchase or sale of securities and from violating Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder.
The court's entry of judgment, which follows a December 2016 grant of summary judgment to the SEC on all its claims against Sethi, resolves the SEC's litigation in its entirety, pending the receiver's final report.
The SEC's litigation was led by Matthew Gulde and Timothy Evans and supervised by Jessica Magee.