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         UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

LITIGATION RELEASE NO. 15353 / April 29, 1997

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION v. BRADLEY J. SIMMONS AND
AMERICAN ENERGY GROUP, LTD H-97-1384, USDC SD/TX (Houston
Division)

     The Securities and Exchange Commission announced that on
April 24, 1997, it filed a civil complaint in the United States
District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston
Division, against Bradley J. Simmons and American Energy Group,
Ltd. ("American Energy"), an oil and gas company located in
Simonton, Texas. The Complaint alleges both defendants violated
the anti-fraud provisions found in Section 17(a) of the
Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities and
Exchange Act of 1934 ("Exchange Act"), and Rule 10b-5 thereunder;
and the reporting provisions found in Section 13(a) of the
Exchange Act and Rules 12b-20, 13a-1, 13a-11 and 13a-13
thereunder.  The Commission seeks entry of permanent injunctions
and imposition of civil penalties against both defendants and the
issuance of an order barring Simmons from acting as an officer or
director of any public company.

     According to the Complaint, beginning in April 1995, and
continuing to the present, the defendants engaged in a scheme to
defraud investors by manipulating the price of American Energy's
stock, which is traded on the Bulletin Board System of the
National Association of Securities Dealers.  The Complaint
further alleges that the defendants issued press releases and
filed reports with the Commission which contained
misrepresentations of material fact and omissions of facts
necessary to make the statements made not misleading concerning
the company's assets and business prospects, including oil and
gas prospects in Pakistan.  As a result of the false and
misleading information alleged, the price of American Energy's
stock is said to have increased from approximately $.80 to over
$8.00 a share during a five-week period in 1995, and to have
remained at artificially high levels through 1995 and much of
1996.