DD Support Board and Research Team

[nodummy]

This part is interesting:

Plaintiff is informed and believes that VGTel, Inc. (VGTL) and New Market Enterprises, Inc. are affiliated with an individual, Edward Durante. Edward Durante is described by the Securities Exchange Commission in 2001 as “a recidivist securities law violator.” Plaintiff is informed and believes that Edward Durante operates under an alias, Kenneth Wise and/or Ted Wise, because he is barred from the securities industry and is thwarting the government’s efforts to collect restitution relating to his prior conduct.


I think Paradigm Oil & Gas Inc (PDGO) and Q Lotus Holdings Inc (QLTS) were also associated with New Market Enterprises Inc (Kenneth Wise aka Edward Durante).


I found this filing posted online. It's a 2013 SEC filing against Edward Durante seeking a civil contempt against him because he has failed to make payments towards his disgorgement and prejudgment interest in the amount of $39,880,680.86 from his 2002 stock fraud charges.

http://www.assetprotectionbook.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=71&t=2132

The SEC points out several inconsistencies between the amount of money/assets Edward Durante claims to own and the lavished lifestyle Edward Durante is actually living.

In that 2013 civil contempt filing the name Kenneth Wise comes up multiple times, the SEC seems to be clueless as to the fact that Kenneth Wise is just an alias made up by Edward Durante (assuming the COR Clearing allegations are true).

Edward Durante says that Kenneth Wise is a friend that visited him often while he was in prison asking what he could do to help Durante once he got out. (sounds like he developed a second personality while he was in prison to me).

Durante testified that Wise's generosity stems from friendship, and that Wise visited Durante in prison to "see how he could help [Durante] when [he] came out."

Kenneth Wise then out of the goodness of his heart bought Durante's wife a porsche, paid to send Durante's children to college, bought thousands of dollars worth of clothing for Wise, and paid for lavished trips to Europe:

Durante explained that his living expenses are funded by Kenneth Wise, and that Wise's corporations, Zenith Estates and New Market Enterprises, fund Durante's lifestyle, including $17,000 in bills at Bloomingdale's and Bergdorf Goodman, college tuition for his children, a Porsche Cayenne for his wife, and lavish trips to Europe


And despite obvious clues that point to Kenneth Wise just being an alter ego for Edward Durante, the thought doesn't appear to have crossed the SEC's mind:

On November 12, 2008, Zenith Estates was incorporated in Nevada, naming Kenneth Wise as Director, Secretary, and Treasurer. (Dkt. No. 251: Schultze 11/8/13 Aff. Ex. 20: Nev. Sec. of State Filings for Zenith Estates.) On August 21, 2009, New Market Enterprises was incorporated in Nevada. (Schultze 11/8/13 Aff. Ex. 23: Nev. Sec. of State Filings for New Market.) Durante paid the 2011 business license and listing fees for both corporations. (Nev. Sec. of State Filings for Zenith Estates; Nev. Sec. of State Filings for New Market.) The SEC obtained in discovery bank statements from Zenith Estates and New Market Enterprises indicating that both corporations (1) paid substantial credit card charges incurred by Durante; and (2) made substantial payments to or on behalf of Durante's family. (Schultze 11/8/13 Aff. Ex. 21: Zenith Estates Account Statement; Ex. 24: New Market Enterprises Account Statement.) Zenith Estates paid Durante's personal expenses. The SEC produced a certified check drawn on the Zenith Estates account and made payable to Bloomingdale's in the amount of $14,462.95 on Durante's behalf. (Zenith Estates Account Statement at 5; Schultze 11/8/13 Aff. Ex. 8: Durante 8/13/13 Dep. at 181.) New Market Enterprises paid $406,500 to Durante's wife Svetlana, $31,000 to or on behalf of Durante's son Adam, and $25,800 to or on behalf of Durante's daughter Alison. (New Market Enterprises Account Statement; see also SEC Br. at 10.) Durante has offered no explanation as to why these businesses are funneling money to his family.

Durante was added as an authorized user on an American Express card and a Citibank card, both belonging to Zenith Estates Director Kenneth Wise. (SEC Br. at 6 & Schultze 11/8/13 Aff. Exs. 16–17.) Wise also provided Durante's wife with a credit card. (SEC Br. at 6.) Durante charged over $150,000 on Wise's American Express card and the bill was paid by Zenith Estates. (Schultze 11/8/13 Aff. Ex. 15: Summary of American Express Account Records at 2; Zenith Estates Account Statement at 0899; see SEC Br. at 6.)

Durante supplemented his initial income disclosures by admitting acceptance of substantial sums of money from "friends." (Dkt. No. 256: Durante 11/26/13 Opp. Br. at 13; Dkt. No. 252: SEC Br. at 18.) Durante disclosed that Kenneth Wise, Director of Zenith Estates, either loaned money or paid expenses on Durante's behalf in an amount exceeding $300,000. (Schultze 11/8/13 Aff. Ex. 12: Durante Second Production Responses at 7–8.)23 These payments were made informally on "a handshake between friends." (Durante Second Production Responses at 8.) Durante further admitted to receiving an additional $125,000 in residuals from past productions of Broadway shows, based on "agreements which have expired but were honored nonetheless among friends."


Edward Durante's wife refused to answer questions from the SEC who were very curious how $1.2m showed up in her bank account and what she did for a living.

the SEC seeks an inference in its favor on all of the questions Svetlana refused to answer, which is nearly all of the substantive questions posed. (Dkt. No. 252: SEC Br. at 19, 21–22; Schultze 11/8/13 Aff. Ex. 11: Svetlana Dep. at 10, 13, 17, 30, 37, 42, 176.) The topics of the unanswered questions range from Svetlana's occupation to the over $1.2 million dollars in deposits into a bank account held solely in her name and her husband's involvement with Zenith Estates and New Market Enterprises.





Seems obvious to me that Edward Durante and Kenneth Wise are probably the same person, but since it took the SEC years to figure out that Stephen P Corso and Steven John Corso were the same person I guess it isn't surprising that they couldn't do the math on Durante and Wise.

Looking back at some of the Charges against Edward Durante from his conduct between 1998 - 2001 shows that he has used aliases in the past. A past alias of his was Ed Simmons.

https://www.sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/lr17177.htm

http://www.nytimes.com/2001/10/12/business/sec-accuses-44-in-fraud-case.html

The SEC was granted the Contempt charges against Edward Durante

http://www.leagle.com/decision/In%20FDCO%2020140926E12/Securities%20and%20Exchange%20Commission%20v.%20Durante