SEC and Kirk Wright
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"it filed a complaint and an emergency application for a temporary restraining order and other relief in the Northern District of Georgia to halt an ongoing offering fraud involving the sale of investments in seven hedge funds by an Atlanta-based promoter and investment advisers controlled by him. The defendants are Kirk S. Wright (Wright); International Management Associates, LLC (IMA) and International Management Associates Advisory Group, LLC (IMA Advisory) and seven hedge funds; International Management Associates Platinum Group, LLC (Platinum I), International Management Associates Emerald Fund, LLC (Emerald Fund), International Management Associates Taurus Fund, LLC, International Management Associates Growth & Income Fund, LLC, International Management Associates Sunset Fund, LLC; Platinum II Fund, LP (Platinum II), and Emerald II Fund, LP. IMA and IMA Advisory are investment advisers in Atlanta, Georgia, owned and operated by Wright and others."
The allegations are that $155 million is missing. False statements were allegedly prepared in order to deceive the investors. You wonder how this can happen. But it is far more common than believed. And as usual, Charles Ponzi had a pretty good angle on why this happens.
Ponzi knew that when he sent out his to his "subscribers" of the Securities Exchange many of them would not redeem their account. It would be more profitable to the investors ego to lord about his own brilliant investment to his peers tha to redeem the subscription.
Cialdini identifies that force at work here as social proof: when we are not certain about what is the case, we look to others for their example - but at times, we work just a little too hard get the others to believe what we do. And sound just a bit shrill in the process.
Comments
members & friends of my family invest with company. i hope he go to jailfor a very long time. he is guilty.
Posted by: jon williams | June 2, 2006 1:17 PM