SEC v. Lee et al.

Civil Action No. 3:23-cv-125-OAW (D. Conn.)

On February 1, 2023, the SEC filed a complaint commenced against Seong Yeol Lee ("Lee") and Ameritrust Corporation (“Ameritrust”) (collectively, the “Defendants”) and various relief defendants in federal court for the District of Connecticut. The Complaint alleges that in an ongoing scheme, the Defendants stole millions of dollars from investors in the Republic of Korea and defrauded investors who purchased Ameritrust shares in public trading in the U.S. penny stock market. In violation of the federal securities laws, the Defendants made false and misleading statements in public filings, including overstating Ameritrust’s assets by at least $70 million, and Lee made false promises that Ameritrust will soon be listed on a major U.S. stock exchange, namely Nasdaq or the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”). Lee recruited at least 2,000 people to invest in Ameritrust, raising at least $20 million, and absconded with at least $4 million for his personal use. See Complaint.

On September 5, 2023, the Court entered final judgments by default against Ameritrust finding it liable for disgorgement of $11,967,705, prejudgment interest of $1,602,391 and a civil penalty of $2,232,280 and against Relief Defendant Beespoke (“Beespoke”) finding it liable for disgorgement of $4,871,097 and prejudgment interest of $325,421. The Commission holds $3,577,307.24 collected from Ameritrust and Beespoke pursuant to the Final Judgments, comprising the Distribution Fund.

On January 25, 2024, the Court issued an order appointing Miller Kaplan Arase LLP, as the Tax Administrator of the Distribution Fund. See Order.

On February 28, 2025, the Court entered an order appointing Rust Consulting, Inc. as the Distribution Agent of the Distribution Fund.  See Court Order.

Note to Investors:  There is no requirement that investors be represented by an attorney to submit a claim to the Securities and Exchange Commission for a distribution.  Investors do not need to pay a fee to participate in a distribution.  Furthermore, attorneys and third-parties may not deduct compensation from distribution payments.  Distribution payments will only be made directly to investor claimants and not to third-parties.

In this matter, the distribution will be governed by a Court-approved Distribution Plan.  At this time, there is no Court-approved Distribution Plan.  Any updates will be posted to this page and investors should consult this page for updates.

For more information, please contact the Commission:

Office of Distributions
Email: ENFOfficeofDistributions@sec.gov

SEC v. Lee et al.
Civil Action No. 3:23-cv-125-OAW (D. Connecticut)
 

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미국 증권거래위원회 배분 집행실
이메일: ENFOfficeofDistributions@sec.gov