Decision Diagnostics Corp (DECN)

[IPwatcher]

Some of it beggars belief...
The crux of the defence argument seems to be that he only admitted that the blood device was fraudulent, therefore any losses attributable to the time after the saliva test pivot (which we all know was every bit as fraudulent) shouldn't weigh into the sentence.
To be clear, the saliva test was every bit as fraudulent as the blood test.
From the court filings, when the prosecution asked him to send the prototype he was going to be entering as an exhibit for examination, he sent them a BGM!
And the expert witness he called to testify that the saliva test did work actually stated the opposite - albeit in somewhat couched language - as per this analysis.

https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=174193669

It would be an absolute travesty to allow him a shred of mitigation, on the basis that he committed 2 frauds instead of just the one, and is trying to use the one for which he was never tried to mitigate the one of which he was convicted! Outrageous! Wake up call indeed!???

[IPwatcher]

Court filings suggest personal insolvency, hence public defender.
In order to pay 'a penny' in restitution, it is first necessary to have 'a penny' to pay, and it seems he has no assets to go after.
From earlier pleadings, it looks like the house he lived in was the property of his now estranged common law wife and mother to his son, and the contention seems to be that she chucked him out in a fit of pique when the '5-0' came and dragged him from out of her bed in handcuffs at 6am.
I can only imagine that subsequent revelations as to the use to which he put some of the proceeds of his crime (i.e. all those online chats with ladies of $negotiable affection) would only have exacerbated her feelings in this regard!

[fuente]

search 'Keith Berman Appeal' and you can listen to a recording of the hearing.

[pumper_stumper]

Anything on today's hearing? Links to filings?

[pumper_stumper]

I don't see any docs about the restitution phase of the case. Did that ever take place? Has our pathetic friend paid a penny in restitution?

[pumper_stumper]

Is there a case number for this? Did they mention what grounds the appeal is on? An appeal of the sentencing, I assume? Due to the poor baby's health? Can he appeal the outcome when he pled guilty?

[IPwatcher]

Oral arguments in KB appeal hearing scheduled for .... wait for it... 9.30 am. Tuesday April 1st 2025.
April Fools day??
Look... I've had my popcorn.
I think they are just trolling him now!
I don't think I can watch any more!

[Alydyr]

Nice work IP - Hey Keith, how will the hockey mask fit in prison?

[IPwatcher]

Transcript of the sentencing hearing is up...
A little bed time reading for the DECN watchers....
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.225086/gov.uscourts.dcd.225086.204.0.pdf

As shown by the victim impact statements, these
weren't just corporate investors or private family offices
that invested. Real middle-class Americans believed you,
invested their life savings in DECN and are now living with
the consequences.
One victim says that he lost about half his
savings. Another described having to curtail travel plans
because of the lost money and that he now has to look into a
home equity loan.
Another couple worries they might not be able to
retire at all after investing about $140,000 in your
fraudulent scheme.
And another who tried to warn others about your
scheme ended up moving because of the threats he received
and he says he's lost faith in our law enforcement system as
a result.
These are very real financial, emotional and
psychological harms that you caused.
More, even once the SEC caught on to your schemes,
you doubled down on your scheme, created a nom de guerre to
undermine their investigation, attacked the integrity and
credibility of the SEC staff member involved and anyone else
who dared to raise questions about your actions and worked
to encourage people to continue to invest in DECN on false
pretense.
To a large extent, this worked. I think
Mr. Fenton is right that your actions caused the wasting of
valuable FDA time at a time when that agency was desperately
trying to provide help for people who were sick and scared
about the pandemic.
I think that he's also right in describing you
tricking victims into writing letters to agencies that
really were against their own self-interest and that were
attempting to stymie the efforts to stop your fraud.
And I think your attacks on Investigator Perkins
are despicable. It was only after the DOJ indicted you that
your scheme finally unraveled. But even that didn't really
stop you. I find by a preponderance of the evidence that
you tampered with witnesses and obstructed the investigation
through your contacts with Victims 1 and 2 specifically and
other victims throughout 2021 and 2022 and that you engaged
in additional fraudulent conduct through entering into loan
agreements you had no intention of repaying, all in
violation of your release conditions.
This is significant, shocking additional
misconduct, the extent of which I rarely see even with
hardened criminals. Even your attorneys admit that it took
having your release conditions revoked for you finally to
wake up to the severity of your actions.
I also have very little evidence of remorse here
for me to consider in your benefit

...

I find the aggravating factors include the fact
that you took advantage of the COVID pandemic to defraud
people, that you so personally and intentionally attacked
investigators trying to stop your fraud scheme and that you
continued to violate the law and your release conditions
even after your indictment.
I also agree with Mr. Fenton that there's a strong
need for general deterrence here, recognizing how vulnerable
we as a country are to fraud during disaster circumstances
and the need to send a clear message that that type of crime
will be punished severely.
These factors frankly suggest that a sentence near
the top of the statutory maximum would be appropriate.
On the other hand, there are several significant
mitigating factors here, including my belief that you hoped
to develop a COVID test, your age and your serious health
conditions.
But for these factors, I would be sentencing you
to a much higher sentence than I intend to impose.

Sleep tight. And don't have nightmares!

[fuente]

Agree.

[IPwatcher]

If all that is required for 'winning' is simply not be locked up in prison, that's a pretty low bar..

Not at all. There's a lot of happiness that can be pursued while that handle is on the inside of the door. The world is your oyster.
Whereas when it isn't... well that's a different perspective. Not many winners in jail.

[fuente]

I would argue that your second point is a bit....depressing?

If all that is required for 'winning' is simply not be locked up in prison, that's a pretty low bar..

[IPwatcher]

That's a rough life. At any age.

It is. But entirely self inflicted!
I think my main takeaways from this whole DECN debacle:

(i) Its not too bad when people round on you and shout you down for being honest. Stick 2 fingers up to them and carry on being honest.
(ii) Winning is not points scoring or dollar amounts or fancy job titles or one-upmanship or having the last word or almost any of the other things that people think it is. Its simply going to bed every night in a room where there is a handle in the inside of the door.

I am happy to have learned those lessons the easy way! Unlike Mr Berman.

[fuente]

It really hits home when you look at the handbook for that prison...which is of course definitely not as strict as others.

That's a rough life. At any age.

[IPwatcher]

I'm sure he is a bit lonely, and would love to hear from us.

You're all right thanks!
He's where he is because of what he did. I wouldn't trade places with him that is for sure. I feel a sense of satisfaction and even relief that justice has caught up with him and stopped his wayward behaviour.
But NOT joy.
As for gloating? Well that is certainly what Berman would have done (and did) BEFORE the reality of the law collided abruptly with whatever narcissistic fantasy he was indulging in.
But what purpose would that serve?
I like to think... or at least hope that I am better than that.
Happy to leave the man be in peace now. He's doing his time, and appears to have lost everything else important. He's down. And kicking a man when he's already on the ground is ungentlemanly behaviour and I was brought up better than that.
So personally, I'd much sooner just pity him now, than bully him, and I would encourage others likewise.

[pumper_stumper]

Our favorite CEO has a new "home". He was transferred to a medical facility prison in Fort Worth, Texas. He has a birthday coming up, on Aug 31. He is allowed to receive mail of course, so how about sending him a birthday card in a couple of weeks? I'm sure he is a bit lonely, and would love to hear from us.

KEITH BERMAN
Register Number: 22728-509
Age: 70
Race: White
Sex: Male
Located at: Fort Worth FMC
3150 HORTON ROAD
FORT WORTH, TX 76119

To send mail to an inmate, use the following:

KEITH BERMAN
Register Number: 22728-509
FMC Fort Worth
FEDERAL MEDICAL CENTER
P.O. BOX 15330
FORT WORTH, TX 76119

The BOP encourages inmates to write to family, friends, and other community contacts to maintain these ties during incarceration. Written correspondence is classified as either general or special mail.

General Correspondence
"General correspondence" is opened and inspected by staff for both contraband and content that might threaten the security or good order of the institution.

Special Mail
Special incoming mail that is specially marked as such, can only be opened only in the presence of the inmate. It too will be inspected for physical contraband and the qualification of any enclosures as special mail.

Of course, this is all public information, available to anyone.

[IPwatcher]

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.225086/gov.uscourts.dcd.225086.213.1.pdf

He's asking to be transferred to FPCs Yankton or Duluth, or else FMC Rochester.
Which is proof that he does remain incarcerated!
Sure, these are minimum security facilities. But while the rest of us can all sleep in rooms equipped with door handles on the inside, it will still be some time before that basic dignity is extended in Mr Berman's direction.

[IPwatcher]

I'm just concerned that somehow, Mr Slimeball, worked his way out of this....

Victims can obtain his actual whereabouts using the Federal Victim notification system.
Last I heard he remains incarcerated at the DC federal prison medical facility that he was committed to at sentencing. I believe this shows as 'not in BOP custody' because he is currently in the medical facility rather than in the general inmate population.
He has certainly not been released from federal custody, and won't be for quite some time I would imagine.,

Rest assured, He's paying his dues one way or another, and I for one would not trade places with him. Pity is the appropriate emotion for him now. Because justice is not nice, but is IS justice.

[pumper_stumper]

I'm just concerned that somehow, Mr Slimeball, worked his way out of this....

"Federal Inmate number 22728-509
Release Date: UNKNOWN
Location: Not in BOP custody"

BOP = Federal Bureau of Prisons

He has a birthday coming up, and I wanted to send him a card, along with an offer to buy his non working 1973 Opel GT. My idea is to rent out rides in it to former DECN shareholders!

[pumper_stumper]

Truth, once again, funnier than fiction.....

"The PSR describes Mr. Berman's financial condition as "appear[ing] to have negative net worth... with no monthly cash flow... [and no] ability to pay a fine in this case, in addition to restitution." PSR at 21 (ECF No. 191). Mr. Berman's assets are dwarfed by his substantial amount of debt. Mr. Berman's assets total $2,460, comprised of $1,500 from an inoperable 1973 Opel GT, $160 dollars in his checking and savings accounts, $100 in DECN stock, and $700 in various electronic equipment. Id. at 19. Mr. Berman's liabilities are extensive, totaling $345,000 owed to financial institutions and other merchants. Id. This results in a substantial negative net worth totaling $342,540. Id.

Mr. Berman's projected earnings and other income are similarly grim. Mr. Berman's age and numerous, serious health issues stimy his ability to begin paying restitution. "

Mere mortals might drive a non working 1973 Opel, but only Biotech CEO's like Berman have the GT model!

FYI, the Government is asking for restitution in the amount of $1,043,618.20

[Alydyr]

So did Ken bring the goalie mask to prison? Hi Ken!

[Alydyr]

What once was lost, now is found!

[IPwatcher]

Plutonium has a new alias at last...
Federal Inmate number 22728-509...

[IPwatcher]

As an aside, thanks to all of the stretching of word meanings in these communications, perhaps Keith should have come up with a scheme to sell quotation marks?

Not his style.... too much hard work!
I think instead Keith would have gone down the route of setting up a company to copy and recycle used quotation marks from elsewhere. (Less work). And rather than actually selling the quotation marks (too much hard work ....someone else could do that!) he'd just have sold shares in the company that had the idea of recycling quotation marks (less work!).
And rather than actually running this business (hard work!) he'd just empty it to fund his lifestyle and porn habit (less work).
And when people started to ask questions about why his much hyped 'quotation mark' business was underperforming, He'd simply diversify into 'commas and related punctuation' and fund raise on the back of that!. Rinse. Repeat.
The "story" was always and ever the product with Berman.
It took a federal judge to assert a jolt of reality into Berman's delusional self belief.
He is your classic Narcissist!
It's a recognized personality disorder/ mental illness. So he has that to fall back on. But its one of those awkward ones in which it's the people around you that suffer!
And agency is important here!
I believe Keith had agency here, so he should account for his destructive behaviour.
I have met the type. I have become a bit of a spotter truth be told!
He could have worn a T shirt which said "I am utterly untrustworthy, do not ever buy from me!" and worked quietly in social care or such like.
Instead - metaphorically - he wore a red cap which said "I am God... worship me and give me all your money! Cross me and I will Kill you"
The 'only fans' was just Berman's way of 'grabbing pussies! Because they let you!'.

[croesusjr]

Nice to see this was resolved properly after all this time and strife. Been checking this board every few months. Thanks IPWatcher for keeping us up to date.

I suffered minor losses, and also remain the "proud" "owner" of 157 "free" shares from the big reverse split forever ago that would have cost me over $300 (iirc) to unrestrict. My only other memento, after decades of following this from when it was ISCR and touted by the "made" and "mayd" handles on Yahoo (two of which inadvertently outed themselves as the same person, despite the feint of stylistic differences, which I pointed out only to be disparaged and ignored), is this private message from Pluto after I questioned the invisibility of the "settlement' in the financials. I post it here simply as a relic for posterity:

Icon for plutoniumimplosion
plutoniumimplosion

Sunday, March 26, 2017 11:34:01 AM

So much time has been wasted discussing nonsense. So it can now be shown that management and the BOD didn't dupe or steal from or hide the settlement from shareholders (and people acting like shareholders who use message boards to fulfill a negative agenda).

So almost a year later what has been proven? NOTHING! Now one of the biggest critics of management and the BOD and the guy who raised the question in the first place in his attempt to put together enough facts to bring a class action lawsuit (because that's what he does), well ... this guy is now claiming credit for unwinding the enigma and finding -- NOTHING.

Isn't there a more important question in need of asking? Something like, why did management settle the lawsuit? And by settling in the matter that they did, wasn't there a plan in place by management?

And, you can get that answer by looking at the pharmatechdirect.com Web page.

How many will look? I predict, less than a handful.

As an aside, thanks to all of the stretching of word meanings in these communications, perhaps Keith should have come up with a scheme to sell quotation marks.

[IPwatcher]

However, I am glad he finally got what he deserves.

If the defence filings are to be believed and where Berman is involved I would exercise appropriate caution..
(see https://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=174215549)
then he lost both his 'common law' wife of 40 years, and his son on the back of his exploits.
IF this is true...
Well.... There is money, And well then there is stuff that actually matters!

The story of Keith Berman is like the film "It's a wonderful Life" but played out in the exact negative!
"Everytime a bell rings, a demon gets given his horns!"

[IPwatcher]

Man, they should have given him more time

It was only old age and ill health that got him down to a 7 stretch!
Government wanted 10, despite the fact that it could have been 20 if he was young and fit...
Defence actually wanted "Time served!" - as his incarceration had been "the wake up call he needed!".
LOL ... talk about a heavy sleeper!!!!

[Jelly Bean]

Man, they should have given him more time for all the scams he pulled prior to the Covid sham. He has been doing this for a couple of decades. However, I am glad he finally got what he deserves.

[lucky, mydog]

lololol.

[lucky, mydog]

he was lucky that he didn't get more.

[IPwatcher]

Biotech CEO Sentenced for $28M COVID-19 Securities Fraud Scheme and Obstruction of Related Investigation

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/biotech-ceo-sentenced-28m-covid-19-securities-fraud-scheme-and-obstruction-related

[IPwatcher]

Outstanding! Given the circumstances, as presented by the Defense, I was hoping for a minimum of 5 years.

The way I look at it is like this:
He was ACTUALLY guilty of and sentenced to 19 years worth of offending.
Taking into account his age and infirmity, the Judge generously and mercifully allowed the sentences to run concurrently, thereby reducing his term of confinement by a factor of 2.7
Now say Thankyou to the nice Judge Keith!!!

[rawman]

Outstanding! Given the circumstances, as presented by the Defense, I was hoping for a minimum of 5 years. Seems like Judge McFadden did a nice job of sorting through Berman's team's BS.

[I ll be back]

So! Stick a fork in it!

7 years, 7 years and 5 years (Concurrently) with 3 yrs supervision thereafter!

The complete justice would have been to also see the folks that aided in this act also serve time. I'm speaking to the Barbara's of the world out there.

I've seen this clown, along with his monkeys do damage long before this cooked up game. It was great to see others sounding the alarm before he did even more damage. The sad part is there will always be other conmen to replace him to take investors for all they got.

So, we now close the chapter on this book, and everyone can move on.
It's been real DDC. Thanks for humor!

[Luka Brasi]

I hope someone snapped a pic of that fat scamming pig bitch crying as the judge read that sentence. That would be worth all of my losses.

[IPwatcher]

7 years, 7 years and 5 years (Concurrently) with 3 yrs supervision thereafter!
So... that is like... "7 years but don't even think of appealing... there is no point!... we got you forwards backwards sideways and upwards... Compris?.... Now Say Thankyou Judge!!"

I take that as the judge showing leniency at the same time as not swallowing any of Berman's bullshit! Nor that of those that spoke up for him!
And as he is below the 10yr limit, he will probably score minimum security. I think the 3yrs supervision is important given the sociopathic behavior exhibited...
I can live with this outcome. They guy is old and sick and I am not cruel. They have locked him up good and hard, but they have not thrown away the key.

But then again , I didn't lose any money. (Nor did I make any... I am honest! . And I sleep at night!)
I just saw this toxic POS for what it was and posted warning notices for others to see (As did several others.
For which I got abuse and intimidation where 'thanks' would have been due.(As did several others... to whom I owe thanks for their warnings that were heeded!)

Ideally I'd like to see ALL of those bottom feeders that scored $ off the back of this DECN scam gone after by law enfrorcment. No one should be able to show a profit in a sad situation like this. No one!

Justice is not quick, but sometimes it gets there in the end!

Minute Entry for proceedings held before Judge Trevor N. McFadden: Sentencing held on 4/12/2024 as to KEITH BERMAN. Defendant sentenced to a term of Eighty-Four (84) Months of Incarceration as to each of Counts 1s and 2s, Sixty (60) Months of Incarceration as to Count 3s, all terms to run concurrently, followed by a term of Thirty-Six (36) Months of Supervised Release as to each of Counts 1s, 2s, 3s, all terms to run concurrently. Special Assessment of $100 imposed as to each of Counts 1s, 2s, 3s, for a total amount of $300. Restitution to be determined at a later date. Bond Status of Defendant: Committed/Commitment Issued. Defense Attorneys: Michelle M. Peterson, Kevin B. Collins, Nick Xenakis; Jose J. Ramos, Jonah T. Panikar, Brandon Howell, Jose F. Giron; US Attorneys: Christopher R. Fenton, Matthew Reilly, Katherine Reilly; Probation Officer: Hana Field; Court Reporter: Lisa Edwards. (hmc)[/url][tag]insert-text-here

[IPwatcher]

7 years!
+3 supervised release!

[rawman]

Berman's sentencing hearing was supposed to start about two hours ago. Wish it was being streamed on YouTube or some other fine subscription service. Actually, I suppose it could be done by now. Waiting for the magic words, "Keith Berman remanded to the slammer!"

[rawman]

LOL! A perfect description of the Keith Berman Effect!

[IPwatcher]

So erm... yeh! That's the thing about being a proven liar Keith....

I think the point is this...
If I asked most people what the weather was like outside? and they told me it was raining, I'd likely believe them.
But If I asked SOME people what the weather was like outside? and they told me it was raining, I'd go to the window and look for myself.

Now if I asked Keith Berman what the weather was like outside? And he told me it was raining...
Well... First I'd go the window. To check whether it was worth going down the 3 flights of stairs.
If it looked like it was raining, I'd go down the stairs and outside into the street.
I would feel the cold drops on my face,
And only then, I would pull an eppendorf tube from my pocket.
And I would catch therein some drops.
And I would send that tube off to a lab.
For a Karl Fischer titration analysis.
And if they told me that the eppendorf contained >99% water.... and showed me the analysis... raw data
then I would ask to see their CLIA certifications....
And if these checked out...
only THEN would I believe Keith Berman when he told me it was raining!

[IPwatcher]

The glowing remarks in the support letters made me want to blow lunch.

I was more disturbed by his stories of maternal emotional abuse as mitigation here...

There are 2 broad possibilities.
One is that Poor Keith's formative years were blighted by an abusive matriarch and this somehow shaped the flawed character whose only catharsis was the comfort he could find was when he quite understandably sought to indulge hundred's of thousands of dollars (of other peoples money) in misogynistic pornography. It was a form of therapy.

An alternate and less beneficent interpretation might be that a sociopathic liar chose to maliciously impugn the reputation of his own long dead mother, incapable of defending herself, and way past the point where any facts could be established one way or the other, in a venal attempt to try and excuse his actions and game a more favourable outcome for himself when stuck on a sticky wicket!?

But - c'mon - what kind of scumbag would try and do something as base as that?
Erm... Exactly the same kind of scumbag that would ruthlessly exploit a worldwide global pandemic (that cost the lives of millions) to score some green off a pump and dump scam, and blow his victims pension saving and college funds on cyber porn. Is that who!?

Whilst the truth is likely somewhere in the middle ground, I guess which of these 2 polarising interpretation you would actually choose to believe depends on how willing you are to take the word of a convicted fraudster, serial liar, arch persuader, mountebank, chancer and moral vacuum Keith Berman as being the actual truth!

So erm... yeh! That's the thing about being a proven liar Keith....

If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in tonights instalment..... etc.

[IPwatcher]

The glowing remarks in the support letters made me want to blow lunch.

My immediate throught was this:
All those who wrote a testimonial for Berman seeking leniency should be made to sign a sworn affadavit that they have not at any point in the last (at least!) 5 years either directly or indirectly personally financially benefitted from the sale or purchase of DECN securities, stocks or debt instruments, in any way.

The testimony of those who are unwilling to sign such a declaration should be disregarded in its entirety.
Remember.... down at the bottom, someone, somewhere profited from this scam!!!!

[rawman]

The tragic part of the sentencing process is the "moral compass" you mentioned will never be part of the discussion. The glowing remarks in the support letters made me want to blow lunch. Similar to a number of our politicos, Berman was obviously the Pied Piper of his own highly irrational cult.

[IPwatcher]

DECN WAS A SCAM!

And the scary thing is ..... it could happen again!
And probably will!

Time served Keith? I think NOT!!!!

... Think about it....
Arie Rabinowitz - for example - wrote a glowing testimonial for his good mate Keith. This guy quite likely has access to the funds needed to start the pump over again. There may be others similarly placed who might be disposed to work the angles!
So age and health considerations aside, with access to finance, all Keith would actually need is another mark to act as 'front' for him, to sign the paperwork etc. (as his conviction would preclude him from doing so), along with a 'new' story as 'cover' - and any number of distressed tech companies could provide that - , and then hey presto, the merry go round is back in business, with Berman in the shade this time, rather than front and centre! "Roll up, Roll up.... get your shares in the next big thing!... We're going to the moon!"

Keith has already shown (via those shareholder letters, for example) that he is quite capable of persuading otherwise honest people to do highly questionable things on his bidding, and also that he has no moral qualms whatsoever about doing so when he thinks it is in his interest!

So its not beyond the realms of possibility!

Age, ill health and Jail are potentially the only things actually holding him in check! His moral compass certainly wasn't holding him in check at any point!

[IPwatcher]

I am extrapolating here, but I guess what was happening was this...
Akpha Capital Instalt were advancing "loans" to DECN with punitive conditions....
OID and interest with D4E swaps that would hurt retail shareholders.

Berman was using the loan principle to pay The Bio Co for supplies and development effort, to support his 'online entertainment' habit and fund his lifestyle,

Meanwhile he was using "Stories" - like the TOV litigation with the prospect of a $300m JnJ litigation pay out (... which was never happening, and didn't) to keep the share price buoyant and attract in 'marks' who would hoover up the shares that Alpha were dumping after conversion at inflated prices.

As the TBJ development effort was losing traction, the 'Shoe in' TOV/ Patent JnJ litigation was the hook for new retail investors.
When that went south initially, he doubled down with the appeal (get 'em cheap) and when that when the way of the dodo the Covid scam fell into his lap like manna from heaven!
All the time, vultures like Alpha were probably coining it in in healthy compounding interest, OID discounts on repayable loan notes, while pocketing discounted shares that were being dumped to the market as quickly as they were vested, thereby diluting any retail investors who actually bought into Berman;s BS to waste.
Rinse and repeat.

Remember that Berman/DECN never even developed Genultimate 'generic' test strip!! - he was just the distributor. The whole (generic) glucose strip business all fell into his lap when Shasta (who did develop the JnJ generic and filed the 510K) sh&t the bed with the FDA and Berman sued them for breach of contract,

To read DECN's press releases, -and Berman's pleading - you'd be forgiven for thinking that DECN - and Keith Berman himself - had invented the whole field of enzymatic glucose amperomtry!

When in fact they inherited some smbg knock-offs from elsewhere via litigation, and used that business to give a veneer of legitimacy to what amounted to a pink sheet pump and dump scam!

As long as DECN stayed afloat, Alpha could keep the finance shekels rolling in, and Berman could maintain the porn habit and lifestyle to which he had become accustomed!

The only losers were DECN retail investors -or "Penny stock traders" as Plutonium would pejoratively label them!


DECN WAS A SCAM!

And the scary thing is ..... it could happen again!
And probably will!

Time served Keith? I think NOT!!!!

[rawman]

Despite several flaky business models, which had no chance of any significant success, DECN stayed in business by touting a grand future, based on heavily promoted lawsuits. How many months did DECN hang on, while Berman was operating under the cover of the lawsuits against J&J? Ultimately, DECN (Berman) never disclosed any of the financial details related to the purported J&J "settlements"! My guess is the settlements were so rotten (or non-existent) Berman could never justify the time and money it took to chase verdicts that had no chance of ever happening. For many years DECN survived, not due to any business activity, but due to Berman's inclination to blow smoke, much like the GenViro/Covid fiasco! For me an important remaining question is, "How did Berman personally survive, if he never took personal compensation from DECN, PharmaTech, and/or any of the related companies? A deep dive by an SEC forensic accountant, with public disclosure, would have been special! Oh well.....

[IPwatcher]

t seems the Berman gang concluded the SEC and/or DOJ would not invest the time and/or effort needed to verify the bogus claims. I bet there are just a few people, you and I included, who could help clarify!

Well here is the first one:

Over the last 20 years, he sold
affordable and reliable diagnostic devices that helped diabetics monitor their blood glucose levels.
These devices worked using impedance spectroscopy, a sophisticated technology that can detect
the electrochemical signature of a blood sample

Smbg test strips of the type that DECN sold use "Electrochemical Amperometry" to do the actual glucose measurement, not EIS. And they have for years.
I think it was around the late 1990s or early 2000s that Roche improved their test strips with a (patented) impedance measurement that allowed a 'hematocrit' correction to be implemented by detecting the red blood cells in the sample and accounting for these in their calibrations, which lead to 'slightly' more accurate results in certain situations. Now whether you could go as far as to say that this impedance correction was actually "EIS spectroscopy" is a matter of semantics... and I would argue was hyperbole.... It was just an AC impedenace measurement. Nothing more.

Now the 'Genultimate' strips that Berman actually sold for use with the One Touch meters did not use ANY impedance based hematocrit correction at all... as those lifescan meters predated that technology becoming freely available, as it was still heavily protected by Roche patents when One Touch Ultra was launched.
Then in the late 2010s, the Roche patents started to term expire and some other manufacturers started exploiting the freedom to operate that this generaed, and they began including impedance based hematocrit correction into their own test systems. But these were basically knock-offs of Roche impedance technology. Old news.

And it was this knock off of twenty year old Roche impedance based hematocrit correction that Berman (or in reality Daniel KIM at the Bio co!) was trying to implement with his "New and groundbreaking" Genultimate TBG product family.
Except he never actually got as far as launching Genultimate TBG.... did he?
He never got it through the regulatory submissions and even if he had done, he was on a hiding to nothing as by then the market was already flooded with cheaper and better versions of the by now quite old smbg technology that Berman was trying to replicate. His smbg business was drying up, and his allegedly 'new' products were already looking pretty dated before he'd even got them off the ground!

But by now he had cooked up some trial meters with the Roche Impedance hematocrit correction capability in them.
And so he claimed he could use these to detect Covid virus in blood. The 'New Story that would allow him to raise millions'

But he couldn't
Firstly, he couldn't detect Covid 19 virus in blood. Because the virus wasn't present in the blood. It was not a blood borne pathogen
Secondly, I am pretty sure that if you COULD reliably detect covid virus with a modified knock off 20 years old Roche rip off glucose meter that easily.... If it was that easy, Roche would have done it!
But You can't. And they didn't!
Finally, while impedance spectrsocopy can detect all sorts of particles, based upon electrical properties and morphology, its really not that very good at distinguishing between them! Is that Covid, or toothpaste? Can't tell. There is a world of difference between a purified sample in a lab and a dirty sample in an endogenous environment.
Now with AI and/or incorporation of biorecognition chemsitry, you could theoretcially one day build an impedance based Covid virus detector, and that might one day work almost as well an immunoassay based lateral flow test.... Why would you?
Absolutely no advantage over a simple lateral flow immunoassay would be conferred by going down a much more technologically convoluted apporach. What would be the point?

In a nutshell, this is how that opening passage should actually read;

Over the last 20 years, he sold
generic test strips that helped diabetics monitor their blood glucose levels.
These devices worked without using any impedance spectroscopy, which is a technology that can detect
the impedance signature of a sample

[rawman]

It is interesting to note the number of "confused" statements found in Berman's Sentencing Memorandum. IMO, Berman's attorneys, coupled with Berman's imagination, provided their somewhat whacked out view the scam. It likely goes without saying, but their statements were not always truthful. It seems the Berman gang concluded the SEC and/or DOJ would not invest the time and/or effort needed to verify the bogus claims. I bet there are just a few people, you and I included, who could help clarify! And the ridiculous claims about St. Keith always endeavoring to serve mankind, seemed to overlook the many years of BS he spewed related to the diabetic test devices. Apparently Berman's family has abandoned him (remember the crap about needing relief from his bail travel restriction to allow visiting his now estranged son in San Diego?), so this very sickly, broken and broke old man should be instantly freed for time served, as of this coming Friday. The Government wants 10 years and Berman's team is lobbying for 1 year. Hmmm...how about a compromise? 5 years sounds logical to me.

[IPwatcher]

I guess many of those that lost money investing in DECN will be wondering where the rest of the money (the part that was not 'expended' by Berman on 'entertainment' and 'lifestyle') has gone?
My guess this may have been the likely destination of a fair chunk of DECN cumulative investor losses over the years...
https://theactivistinc.medium.com/alpha-capital-anstalt-8c8dff4f1351
I am not suggesting that there I anything illegal about lending lending at punitive interest rates to distressed companies - which is what Alpha seem to do... vulture cpaitalism is just that!
But Alpha Capital Anstalt do seem to have some quite close links to LH Financial Services corp.
And Arie Rabinowitz of LH wrote this touching character reference to the judge for our dear keith....for the sentencing hearing.
https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.225086/gov.uscourts.dcd.225086.195.4.pdf

I guess its the least he could do, given how profitable all those loans (and interest repaid, and shares converted) that alpha advanced DECNs way might conceivably have turned out to be over the years?

I have no information beyond what is in DECN's published accounts to go on here (and who knows what can be made of those....)... and I am sure that some 'paper' losses will have gone the way of DECN lenders....
But it would also not surprise me at all if it turned out that these guys were 'net' substantially in the black when the music stopped.

[IPwatcher]

If memory serves, the actual sentencing is set to happen in the next two or three weeks.

Close...
Its on Friday!
2pm. Straight after lunch.
Which is a lucky break for Keith I guess....
https://www.theguardian.com/law/2011/apr/11/judges-lenient-break