Replies to post #65197 on Hemp Inc (HEMP)

[Det_Robert_Thorne]

Four guys used news to illegally trade HEMP

What happened in 2014 when the big news came?

Four guys used the news to engage in what the SEC thought was illegal, manipulative trading to drive up the price of some marijuana stocks, including HEMP:

Similarly, the SEC alleges that Hawatmeh, Galas, and Mrowca bought and sold approximately 41.7 million shares of Hemp Inc. in January and February 2014 while the stock was actively promoted on the Internet. For example, one Internet tout on February 6 claimed that Hemp could reach “a REAL Possible Gain of OVER 2900%.” During the promotion, Hawatmeh, Mrowca, and Galas engaged in manipulative wash trades and matched orders to manipulate Hemp’s common stock before selling their shares for illegal gains.

“This was a carefully planned operation by Galas, Hawatmeh, Mrowca, and Pustovit to distort the performance of specific penny stocks as they were simultaneously promoted through social media and the Internet. As the companies’ stock prices increased, these four promoters opportunistically dumped their shares for illicit gains,” said Amelia A. Cottrell, associate director in the SEC’s New York Regional Office.

https://www.sec.gov/News/PressRelease/Detail/PressRelease/1370542594818

I don't have time to check right now, but I believe that all either pled guilty/no contest, or were found guilty.