"Today's charges seek to knock out one of the largest illegal spamming
and fraud operations in the country, an international scheme to make money
by manipulating stock prices through illegal spam e-mail promotions.
The charges arose after a three-year investigation
- led by agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance
from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Internal Revenue Service
- revealed a sophisticated and extensive spamming operation that, as alleged
in the indictment, largely focused on running a stock "pump and dump"
scheme, whereby the defendants sent spam touting thinly traded Chinese
penny stocks, drove up their stock price, and reaped profits by selling
the stock at artificially inflated prices.
On January 3, 11 people from around the world were charged with using botnets to run what is billed as one of the largest illegal spamming operations in the nation.
Contact:
RAY BECKERING
RONALD STELLA
ASSISTANT U.S. ATTORNEYS
clipped from: detroit.fbi.gov 