Investor's Watchdog.com: Stock, finance and investment protection for investors

Last month, Investor’s Watchdog kept a client away from two oil and gas opportunities that may soon be revealed as frauds.  This week, the SEC identified two other oil and gas investments that it believes to be fraudulent.  Specifically, the SEC has charged Jason A. Halek and his companies, Halek Energy, LLC and CBO Energy, Inc. with raising $22 million by lying to prospective investors about the risks and potential returns from the investment.  The SEC’s press release reads, in part:

The Commission’s complaint alleges that, between June 2007 and September 2009, Jason Halek, Halek Energy and CBO Energy raised approximately $22 million from at least 300 investors nationwide by making materially false and misleading statements about the risks of the oil and gas projects, the use of investor funds, and potential returns from the investments. The complaint further alleges that Jason Halek knew these representations were false and that the vast majority of the oil or gas projects never provided the promised returns to investors. Finally, the complaint alleges that Wilbourn earned large commissions from promoting and selling unregistered oil and gas working interests and pre-IPO shares.

The SEC also charged one of Halek’s salesmen, Christopher Chad Wilbourn, with acting as an unregistered broker-dealer.

We’ve seen quite a few oil and gas frauds lately.  Be aware that they are on the rise.  And be aware that, without professional help, you won’t be able to recognize them.

Smart investors give credit where it is due; scam artists are good.  Smart investors therefore take sensible precautions before committing any part of their nest egg to an unregistered investment.  Those who think that they can evaluate such opportunities on their own — that a trip to see the supposedly working well is sufficient — often wind up losing everything they worked and saved for.