A 38-year-old man charged in 2009 with taking part in a stock-fraud conspiracy that prosecutors claim generated more than $40 million appeared in Tulsa federal court on Friday after being found in Costa Rica.
Joshua Wayne Lankford was flown to Tulsa from San Jose, Costa Rica, in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service after an investigation that included the U.S. State Department, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine Depew.
Lankford was one of five men charged in Tulsa federal court in January 2009 for plotting, from 2004 through 2006, to "pump up" the stock of three companies and then dump the stocks quickly at the expense of investors.
By the time of the 2010 trial of co-defendants George David Gordon and Richard "Rick" Clark, Lankford was being described as a fugitive. Co-defendant Dean Sheptycki remains at large.
In October 2010, Gordon was ordered to serve 15 years and eight months in prison, while Clark was given a 12-year, 7-month term.
James Reskin pleaded guilty in March 2010, admitting that he entered into a conspiracy with Gordon "and others." His sentencing is set for Aug. 1.
While the criminal case against Lankford has been pending, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission obtained a default judgment against him in a civil case.
U.S. District Judge Claire Eagan ordered last July that Lankford be partially responsible for the $40 million that represents profits of the conduct alleged in the SEC's complaint, along with pre-judgment interest of $10.3 million.
Eagan also ordered Lankford pay a civil penalty of $43.9 million.
Lankford pleaded innocent Friday to the criminal charges.
Original Print Headline: Man in $40 million fraud case appears in court
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