Court orders $12 million disgorgement in stock manipulation case

As part of a final judgment in a case brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission, a federal court in New Jersey has ordered Samuel DelPresto and the firm he owned, MLF Group, to pay disgorgement of $12.12 million and interest of $1.8 million for their roles in a market manipulation scheme. [More:​ Man accused of $17M 'pump-and-dump' scheme walks free] The court deemed the monetary sums satisfied by a forfeiture order entered against Mr. DelPresto in a parallel criminal action brought by the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey. The SEC's complaint, filed in December 2015, alleged that Mr. DelPresto and his partner, Donald Toomer Jr., secretly acquired ownership of the vast majority of shares of at least four microcap companies as part of a scheme to heavily promote the companies' stocks and then dump the shares on the public. Mr. Toomer, an investment adviser associated with a broker-dealer, received cash kickbacks in exchange for purchasing three of the companies' stocks in his clients' accounts, creating the appearance of liquidity and demand. [Recommended video: Change agent in financial advice] In its final judgment, the court ordered Mr. Toomer to pay disgorgement of $19,334 and prejudgment interest of $3,364. In a separate administrative hearing, Mr. Toomer agreed to a bar from the securities industry. Register now for our ESG & Impact Forum at the U.N. on Dec. 5.