U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Litigation Release No. 22802 / September 19, 2013
Securities and Exchange Commission v. Axius, Inc., Roland Kaufmann, and Jean-Pierre Neuhaus, Civil Action No. 12 Civ. 3338 (JG) (E.D.N.Y.)
Court Enters Final Judgment by Consent Against SEC Defendant Roland Kaufmann
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that on September 18, 2013, the Honorable John Gleeson, United States District Court Judge for the Eastern District of New York, entered a final judgment by consent against Defendant Roland Kaufmann. The final judgment permanently enjoins Kaufmann from future violations of Sections 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Sections 9(a)(1) and 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. The final judgment also (i) orders Kaufmann to pay total combined disgorgement and prejudgment interest of $50,368.17, which is deemed satisfied by the forfeiture order entered against him in a parallel criminal action, (ii) bars Kaufmann from participating in any offering of penny stock, and (iii) prohibits Kaufmann from acting as an officer or director of a public company.
On July 5, 2012, the SEC filed its complaint against Axius, Inc., Jean-Pierre Neuhaus, and Kaufmann, alleging that from at least January 2012, they engaged in a fraudulent broker bribery scheme designed to manipulate the market for the common stock of Axius, Inc. The complaint alleged that they engaged in an undisclosed kickback arrangement with an individual who claimed to represent a group of registered representatives with trading discretion over the accounts of wealthy customers.
The Commission acknowledges assistance provided by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority and the Ontario Securities Commission in this matter.
For further information, please see Litigation Release Number 22410 (July 6, 2012).