Atlanta Business Chronicle - by Joe Rauch Staff Writer Friday, July 25, 2008
The Securities and Exchange Commission's Atlanta office is seeking to shut down a sustainable energy company as part of an alleged stock fraud scheme.
The complaint alleges John H. Rivera, CEO of U.S. Sustainable, and Alice M. Price, his live-in companion, engaged in a so-called "pump and dump" scheme between October 2006 and February 2007, distributing false press releases about the company's business model -- converting soybeans into biofuel -- that improperly inflated the value of the company's stock. Price and Rivera then capitalized on that misinformation, selling the shares for nearly $1 million in profits, the SEC says.
The alleged false statements include claims about the Natchez, Miss.-based company's patents, contracts, operations and technology, including that the company could produce biofuel for 50 cents a gallon.
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