FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                     99-172

   SEC and U.S. Attorney File Fraud Charges Against Two Former
   UCLA Students and One Other for Internet Stock Manipulation
                                
     Three Charged Made $364,000 by Using UCLA Computers to
       Spread False Information on Internet Message Boards

     Washington, DC, December 15, 1999 -- The Securities and
Exchange Commission today filed civil fraud charges against three
Southern California residents, two of whom are recent UCLA
graduates, for manipulating the price of a thinly-traded stock by
spreading false information on Internet message boards, allowing
them to reap $364,000 in trading profits.  The individuals are:
Arash Aziz-Golshani of Beverly Hills, Allen Derzakharian of La
Crescenta, and Hootan Melamed of Pomona; the first two are recent
UCLA graduates.  The Commission was granted a temporary
restraining order against the three defendants' future violations
of the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws, as
well as a freeze on their assets.  Defendants Aziz-Golshani and
Melamed also have been arrested and charged by the U.S. Attorney
for the Central District of California with one count each of
conspiracy to commit securities fraud.

     The Commission's civil complaint alleges that, as a result
of the defendants' manipulation, the price of NEI Webworld, Inc.
(NEIP) common stock rose from $.13 (thirteen cents) per share at
the close of trading on Friday, November 12, 1999 to a peak of
more than $15 per share soon after the opening of the market on
Monday, November 15, before declining precipitously.

     SEC Enforcement Director Richard H. Walker said, "Let this
serve as a warning to con men:  if you use the Internet to
manipulate our securities markets, we can and will find you.
Though the perpetrators in this case went to great lengths to
hide from us, we discovered them within a matter of days.  And
investors who frequent message boards should be warned as well:
Internet postings may be informative but many are no more
valuable than graffiti."

     The Commission's civil complaint alleges that the three
defendants bought large blocks of NEIP, a microcap stock traded
through the NASD's over-the-counter bulletin board system,
between November 9 and 12, 1999.  They then drove up the price of
the stock over the weekend of November 13-14 by sending to
Internet financial message boards, from computer accounts created
at a UCLA library, numerous copies of a fraudulent message
predicting the acquisition of all outstanding NEIP common shares
by a privately-held San Jose, CA firm.  They used multiple
pseudonyms to send the fraudulent messages.  In fact, no such
acquisition was ever planned.

     The Commission is also seeking preliminary and permanent
injunctions barring the defendants from future violations of the
antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws, disgorgement
of the defendants' ill-gotten gains, and civil money penalties.

     We are grateful to the NASD for its able assistance in this
matter.

     For further information contact Erich Schwartz at
(202) 942-4540.

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