United States v. MICHAEL CASTILLERO; a/k/a "Michael Alejandro"; FRANCINE LANAIA; and BRIAN MARTINSEN, Southern District of New York (Nov. 29, 2023) — Indictment

UNITED 
STATES 
DISTRICT 
COURT 
SOUTHERN 
DISTRICT 
OF 
NEW 
YORI< 
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X 
UNITED 
STAT
ES 
OF 
AMERICA 
- v. -
MICHAEL 
CASTILLERO, 
a/k/a 
"Mic
hael 
Alejandro," 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA, 
and 
BRJAN 
MARTINSEN, 
Defendants. 
X 
Overview 
INDICTMENT 23 
Cr. 
1. 
From 
at least 
in 
or 
about 
2017 
through 
at least 
in 
or 
about 
April 
2022, MICHAEL 
CAST
ILLERO, 
a/k/a 
" Michael 
Alejandro;' 
FRANCINE 
LANA
IA
, and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN, 
the defe
ndant
s,  engage
d in 
a scheme 
to 
defraud 
investors 
in 
a gro
up 
of 
nin
e related 
priv
a
te 
funds 
known 
generally 
as 
the 
"StraightPath 
Funds." 
In 
particular, 
the 
defendant
s,  and 
others 
working 
at 
their 
dir
ection, 
used 
"boiler 
room
"-sty
le 
call centers 
to 
market 
the 
StraightPath 
Fun
ds,  including 
to 
individual, 
non-profe
ssional 
inve
stor
s,  as 
presenting 
an 
oppmtunity 
to 
invest 
in 
privately 
held 
companies 
expecte
d  to 
go 
public 
in 
the 
near 
future 
("pr
e-IPO 
companies"). 
The 
defendants 
purported 
to 
offer 
inve
stors 
the chance 
to 
acquire 
shares 
in 
pre-IPO 
companies 
at favorable 
prices 
in 
advance 
of 
an 
anticip
ated 
publi
c  offering, 
at 
which 
time, 
they 
claimed, 
the 
shares 
would 
be 
worth 
signi
ficantly 
more. 
2. 
Althou
gh the 
defenda
nts a
nd 
their 
agents 
represented 
to 
existing and 
prospective 
inv
estors 
in 
the  Strai
ghtPath 
Funds 
that 
they 
earned 
no 
up
front 
fees 
in 
connection 
with 
the 
StraightPath 
Funds' 
acq
uisition 
of 
pre-IPO 
sha
res, 
in 
real
ity, 
and contrary 
to 
th
eir fiduciary 
duti
es, 
the 
defendants 
acq
uir
ed 
the 
shares 
and 
then 
so
ld  them 
to 
inv
estors 
at 
arbitrari
ly  inflated 
and 

excessive 
prices 
without 
disclosing 
to 
inv
est
ors the 
nature 
or 
extent 
of 
the markup. 
The 
defendant
s 
also 
mi
sled 
inve
sto
rs 
regarding 
the 
nature 
of 
their 
investments 
and 
hid 
the 
involvement 
of 
MICHAEL 
CASTILLERO, 
a/k/a 
"M
ich
ael 
Alejandro
," 
and 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA, 
th
e 
defen
dants
, who 
had 
been 
previous
ly barred 
from 
the 
sec
urities 
industry 
by 
the 
Financia
l Industry 
Regulatory 
Authority 
("FINRA"). 
Moreover, 
in 
order 
to 
eva
de  detection 
of 
their 
sche
me
, 
CASTILLERO 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINS
EN, 
the 
defendant
,  destrnyed 
record
s  and 
otherwise 
obstructed 
the 
effor
ts 
of 
the  United 
States 
Securities 
and 
Exchange 
Co
mmission 
("S
EC") 
to 
uncover 
the 
defendan
ts' 
fraud 
on 
inv
estor
s. 
Background 
3. 
Privately 
he
ld 
companies, 
in contrast 
to 
public 
companies, 
are 
genera
lly 
both 
more 
difficult 
to 
inve
st 
in 
and 
more 
diffic
ult 
to 
acquire 
information 
about. 
While 
share
s  in 
public 
companies 
are, 
by 
definition, 
traded 
on 
public 
exchanges, 
and 
thus 
have 
an 
easily 
di
sce
rnib
le 
market 
price
, sales 
of 
shares 
in 
private 
companies, 
and 
the 
pric
es 
of 
tho
se 
shares, 
are 
negotiat
ed 
between 
buyer 
and 
seller 
and 
may 
not 
be 
disclosed 
to 
other 
investors
.  Further, 
while 
public 
companies 
must 
file 
financial 
statements 
and 
other 
information 
with 
the 
SEC, 
private 
companies 
are 
gene
rally 
not 
requir
ed to 
provide 
information 
about 
their 
financial 
soundne
ss, 
rev
enue
,  or 
expected 
growt
h 
to 
the 
public. 
MICHAEL 
CASTILLERO, 
a/k/a 
"M
ichael 
Alejandro," 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA
, and 
BRJAN 
MARTINSEN, 
the 
defe
ndant
s, 
exp
loited 
the 
relat
ive 
opacity 
of 
and 
lack 
ofre
tail
-inv
estor 
access 
to 
the 
pre-IPO 
market 
by 
offering 
int
erests 
in 
pre
-IPO 
shar
es 
at 
inflated 
prices, 
while 
portraying 
their 
alleged 
access 
to 
private 
share
s 
as 
a  tremen
dou
s 
opportunity 
for 
retail 
investors 
to 
invest 
ear
ly 
in 
closely 
held high-tech 
and 
high-growth 
sta.i.tups
. 
4. 
MICHAEL 
CAST
ILLERO
,  a/k/a 
"Michae
l  Alejan
dro
," 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA
, 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN, 
the 
defendants> 
con
duct
ed 
this 
scheme 
through seve
ral 
related 
entiti
es. 
2 

Among 
those 
entities 
was 
StraightPat
h Venture 
Partners LLC 
("SPVP")
, which 
was, 
at 
all 
times 
rel
evant 
to 
this 
Indictment
, the 
manager 
of 
the 
nine 
StraightPath 
Funds
. CASTILLERO, 
LANAIA, 
and 
MARTINSEN 
also 
contTO
lled 
StraightPath 
Management 
LLC 
(the 
"SP 
Adviser"), 
which 
was 
the 
investment 
adviser 
to 
each 
of 
the 
StraightPath 
Funds. 
The 
Sc
heme 
to 
Defra
ud 
5. 
In 
order 
to 
generate 
interest 
in 
the 
StraightPa
th  Funds 
among 
retail 
investors
, 
MICHAEL 
CAST
ILLERO
,  a/k/a 
"Michae
l  AlejandJ:o," 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA, 
and 
BRlAN 
MARTINSEN, 
the 
defendants
,  used 
finders, 
or 
"referral 
agents," 
to 
pitch 
prospect
i
ve 
investors 
and 
thereafter 
to 
serve 
as 
the 
investors' 
primary 
point 
of 
contact. 
The 
defendants 
utilized 
"boiler 
room"-style 
call 
center
s in 
which 
salespeople 
cold-ca
lled 
potentia
l investors, 
many 
of 
whom 
were 
not 
sophisticated, 
and 
gave 
aggressive 
sa
les 
pitches 
using 
notes 
and 
pitch 
sc
ripts. 
Contrnry 
to 
the 
defendant
s' 
claim 
that 
they 
and 
their 
agents 
did 
not 
make 
money 
un
less 
and 
until 
inve
stors 
received 
a profit 
on 
their 
investments, 
SPVP 
paid 
refena
l agents 
a commission, 
typica
lly a 
10 
to 
15 
percent 
front
-end 
fee 
based 
on 
the 
amount 
of 
the 
investment, 
plus 
a port
i
on 
of 
the 
carried 
intere
st  on 
the 
back 
end. 
6. 
In 
addition 
to 
mis
leading 
prospect
ive 
investors 
about 
the 
compensa
tion 
paid 
to 
refena
l  agents, 
MICHAEL 
CASTILLERO, 
a/k/a 
"Michael 
Alejandro,'' 
FRANCINE 
LANA
I
A, 
and 
BRlAN 
MARTINSEN
,  the 
defendants
,  defrauded 
investors 
in 
the 
Stra
ightPath 
Funds, 
for 
which 
they 
acte
d  as 
fiduciaries, 
by 
(a) 
charging 
investors 
excessive 
and 
undi
sclosed 
markup
s on 
share 
prices 
of 
pre-IPO 
companies, 
which 
benefited 
the 
defendants 
and 
their 
associates 
at 
the 
expense 
of 
inve
stors 
and 
the 
StraightPath 
Funds; 
(b) 
routinely 
overstating 
to 
inv
estors 
the number 
ofpre-IPO 
share
s that 
backe
d the 
int
eres
ts in 
Strai
ghtPa
th Funds 
they 
sold; 
(c) 
falsely representing 
that  investors 
were 
investin
g 
in 
a specific 
"Series" 
within 
a  specific 
StraightPath 
Fund 
and 
that 
3 

their 
contributions 
correlated 
to spec
ific 
share
s 
of 
spec
ific 
pre-IPO 
companies, 
when, 
in 
actua
lity, 
inv
est
or 
funds 
were 
commingled 
across 
Ser
ies 
and 
Funds 
and 
used for 
purpo
ses 
not 
disclosed 
to 
inv
estor
s,  including 
to 
pa
y 
out 
other 
investors 
and 
to 
compensate 
the 
defendant
s  and 
their 
associates; 
( 
d) 
false
ly 
repre
sentin
g  that 
a  part
icul
ar 
individual 
("Fun
d  Mana
ger- I ") 
acted 
as 
manager 
of 
each 
of 
the 
Strai
ghtP
ath Funds 
and 
the SP 
Adviser 
when, 
in 
actuality
, CASTILLERO, 
LANAIA
, 
and 
MARTINS
EN 
performed 
the 
functions 
ascribed 
to 
Fund 
Manage
r-I 
in 
StraightPath
's 
offer
ing  do
cument
s includin
g, 
amo
ng oth
er thin
gs, 
usin
g 
an 
email 
address 
in 
the 
na
me 
of 
Fund 
Mana
ge
r-
I  to 
correspond 
with 
inves
tor
s; and 
( e) otherw
ise 
actively 
taking 
steps 
to 
prev
e
:nt 
investo
rs  from 
learning 
about 
LANAIA's 
and 
CASTILLERO's 
leadership 
roles 
in light 
of 
the 
fact 
that 
both 
had 
been 
sus
pended 
and 
later 
pe
rmanently 
barred 
from 
involvem
ent 
in 
the 
securities 
indu
st
ry 
by 
FINRA. 
7. 
In 
total
, durin
g  the  course 
of 
their 
scheme, 
from 
in 
or 
about 
2017 
throu
gh 
in 
or 
about 
April 
2022, 
MICHAEL 
CASTILLERO, 
a/k/a 
"Michae
l Alejandro,'' 
FRAN
CINE 
LANAIA
, 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN
,  the 
defendants, 
and 
th
eir 
agen
t
s, 
so
licited 
inv
estm
ents 
in
to 
the 
Strai
ghtPath 
Fund
s 
of 
approximately 
$386 
million from 
at 
leas
t 2, 000 
investors
. CA
STILLERO
, 
LANAIA, 
and 
MARTINSEN 
used 
much 
of 
the
se 
inve
stor  funds 
to 
enrich 
themselves 
and 
th
eir 
associates 
and 
refenal 
agents
. CAST
ILLERO, 
LANAIA, 
and 
MARTIN
SEN 
themselves 
rece
ived 
a tot
al 
of 
more 
th
an 
$7 
4 million 
in 
inv
estor
s' 
fund
s, much 
of 
which 
was 
not 
disc
lo
sed t
o inv
estor
s 
or 
in 
accordance 
with 
th
e  Stra
ightPa
th Funds 
offering 
do
cuments. 
The 
defe
ndant
s a
lso 
pa
id 
tens 
of 
million
s 
of 
dollars 
in in
ves
tor 
funds 
to 
their 
associa
te
s and 
referral 
agents, 
despite having made 
and 
cau sed t
o be made 
exp
licit  repr
esen
tati
ons to 
investors 
that fees 
were 
not 
being charged 
or 
were 
being 
waived. 
In 
all, approxima
tely 3
0 percent 
of 
the 
ca
pital 
con
t
Ti
butions 
the 
StraightPath 
Fund
s received 
fro
m 
investors 
was 
diverted 
to 
p
ay 
the defendants 
and their 
associa
tes. 
4 

8. 
In 
addition 
to 
dec
eiv
in
g  inve
stor
s  about 
how 
their 
money 
wa
s  being 
used,  the 
defend
ants 
lied 
to 
inve
stor
s a
bout 
who 
was 
managin
g 
th
at money. 
In particu
lru:
, at all 
tim
es 
relevant 
to 
thi
s Indictment
, Fund 
Mana
ge
r-I was 
listed 
in 
off
erin
g memoranda
, communications, 
and 
other 
docum
ents  as 
the 
man
ager 
of 
the 
SP 
Adviser 
and 
each 
of 
th
e  StraightP
ath 
Funds. 
In 
actuali
ty, 
MI
CHAEL 
CAST
IL
LE
RO
,  a/k/a 
"Mich
ael  Alejandro," 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA, 
and 
BRI
AN 
MARTINSEN, 
the 
defe
ndants
, founded 
and 
joint
ly controlled 
SPVP, 
the 
SP 
Adviser, 
and 
eac
h 
of 
th
e  StraightPath 
Funds. 
At 
various 
tim
es 
relevant 
to 
thi
s  Indictment
,  each 
of  MARTINS
EN, 
CASTILLERO, 
and 
LANAIA 
downpl
aye
d their own 
rol
es 
in 
the 
management 
of 
the 
Strai
gh
tPat
h 
Funds 
and 
exagge
rat
ed  Fund 
Man
age
r- I
's 
rol
e 
in 
or
der to 
conceal 
from 
inve
sto
rs and 
regulat
ory 
bodi
es, 
includin
g the 
SEC, 
the 
tru
e nature 
of 
their 
involv
em e
nt 
in 
and 
control 
over 
SPVP
, the 
SP 
Adviser, 
and 
each 
of 
the 
Strai
ghtPath 
Funds. 
In 
particu
l
ru·: 
a. 
From 
in 
or 
about 
2017 
up 
to 
and 
includin
g 
in 
or 
about 
Februruy 
2019
, 
CAS
TILL
ER
O was, 
on 
paper, 
the 
majority 
beneficial 
own
er 
of 
th
e SP 
Adv
i
se
r and 
SPVP 
and the 
control 
perso
n 
of 
the 
tw
o Funds 
th
en 
in 
existenc
e: 
SP Venture
s Fund, 
LLC 
a
nd 
SP 
Venture
s Fund 
2, 
LLC. 
At 
that 
tim
e, 
CAS
TILLE
RO 
u
se
d 
th
e  titl
e  Mana
ging  Dir
ecto
r. 
In 
Februruy 
2019, 
CAS
TILL
ERO 
was 
pe1manently 
ban ed from 
associat
ing with 
any member 
of 
FINRA 
for 
refu
sing 
to 
app
ea
r  in 
FINRA 
pro
cee
din
g. 
At 
that 
point
,  CASTILLE
RO
's 
inter
est
s 
in 
the 
SP 
Adviser 
and 
SPVP 
were 
tran
sfe
rred, on 
pape
r, to 
MARTINSEN, 
but 
neve
rthele
ss 
CAST
ILLERO 
continued 
to 
oversee 
SPVP 
operations 
as 
before. 
CAST
ILL
ER
O took 
fwiher 
steps to conceal 
the 
natur
e 
of 
his 
in
vo
lvement 
in 
SPVP
, including 
changing his ema
il ad
d1
·ess 
to 
"Michael 
Alejandro
," 
his 
first name 
and middle 
nam
e. As 
a result 
of 
th
ese 
decep
tiv
e mea
sure
s, CASTILLERO's 
role 
in 
SPVP, 
und
er 
any 
name 
or 
any 
title
, was 
never 
disclo
sed to 
invest(?rs 
in 
any 
of 
th
e StraightPath 
Funds' 
offe
rin
g 
document
s. 
5 

b. 
In 
February 
2019, 
after 
CASTILLERO 
was 
permanent
ly  barred 
from 
the 
securities 
industry 
by 
FINRA
, CASTILLERO 
tran
sfe
1Ted 
his interests 
in the 
SP 
Adviser 
and 
SPVP 
to 
MARTINSEN. 
Offerin
g memoranda 
for 
SP 
Fund 
3, LLC 
through 
SP 
Fund 
9, 
LLC 
describe 
MARTINSEN 
as 
havin
g  been 
appointed 
the 
Direc
tor 
of 
SPVP 
and 
the 
SP 
Adviser 
in 
February 
2019
. Although 
MARTINSEN 
was 
one 
of 
the 
foW1ders 
of 
SPVP 
and 
helped 
control 
its 
operations 
beginning 
in 
or 
about 
2017, 
he 
was 
not 
mentioned 
in 
the 
offering 
documents 
for 
the 
first 
two 
StraightPath 
Funds, 
which 
were 
estab
li
shed 
in 
2017 
and 
2018, 
respective
ly. 
c. 
LANAIA 
provided 
the see
d money 
to 
found 
SPVP 
and
, at all 
time
s relevan
t 
to 
this 
Indictment, 
maintained 
a  lead
ership 
role 
consistent 
with 
that 
of 
an 
officer 
or 
director. 
Nonetheless, 
LANAIA's 
role 
was 
never 
di
sclosed 
to 
investors
,  and 
she  regularly 
sent 
and 
responded 
to 
emails 
using 
Fund 
Manager-1 
's 
emai
l account 
and 
signed 
documents 
for 
him 
using 
a rubb
er stamp 
bearing 
his 
signature. 
LANAIA 
was 
formerly 
a registered 
broker-dealer 
but 
was 
suspende
d 
from 
association 
with 
any 
FINRA 
member 
in 
early 
2018 
for 
fai
lur
e  to 
disc
lose 
outstanding 
civil 
jud
gments 
on 
FINRA 
forms. 
Her 
suspension 
became 
a permanent 
bar 
in 
October 
2018
. 
The 
Scheme 
to 
Obstruct 
9. 
Throughout 
the 
time 
per
iod 
relevant 
to this 
Indictm
ent, 
MICHAEL 
CASTILLERO, 
a/k/a 
"M
icha
el  Alejandro," 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA, 
and 
BRlAN 
MARTINS
EN,  the 
defendants, 
actively 
took 
ste
ps 
to 
conceal 
the 
true 
nature 
of 
SPVP's 
operations 
not 
on
ly from 
inv
estor
s  but 
also 
from 
regul
atory 
bodies
, including 
FINRA 
and 
the 
SEC. 
For 
examp
le: 
a. 
In 
2018 
and 
2019, 
SEC 
staff 
con
duct
ed 
a voluntary 
examinat
ion 
of 
the 
SP 
Adviser 
and 
relat
ed entiti
es. In 
text 
messages 
on 
or 
about 
November 
30
,  2018, 
CASTILLERO, 
LANAIA, 
and 
MARTINSEN 
discussed 
the 
need 
to 
tell 
a 
par
ticular 
sales 
agent 
not 
to 
come 
to 
the 
6 

StraightPath 
offices 
on 
the 
day 
the 
SEC 
staff 
was 
expected 
to 
visit 
so 
that 
they 
could 
pretend 
that 
the 
sales 
agent's 
desk 
belonged 
to 
Fund 
Manager-
I. 
b. 
On 
or 
abo
ut 
December 
10, 
2019, 
MARTINSEN 
gave 
swom 
testimony 
to 
FINRA. 
During 
that 
testimony, 
MARTINSEN 
was 
evasive, 
pretended 
not 
to 
know 
the 
answers 
to 
questions 
on 
numerous 
topics 
related 
to 
his work 
at Strai
ghtPath, 
and 
averred 
that 
Fund 
Manager-
1 was 
in 
charge 
of, 
and 
the 
only 
person 
with 
knowledge 
of
, many 
aspects 
StraightPath's 
operations. 
MARTINSEN's 
testimony 
included 
numerous 
false 
and 
misleading 
statements, 
including 
0) 
that 
he 
was 
not 
truly 
a "managing 
director" 
of 
StraightPath, 
and 
that 
the 
titles 
in 
his 
StraightPath 
emai
l 
signature 
referring 
to 
him 
as 
"Manag
ing Director/Founder" 
appeared 
there 
due 
to 
an 
error 
in 
setting 
up 
MARTINSEN's 
email 
account; 
(ii) 
that 
CAST
ILL
ERO's 
role 
at 
SPVP 
was 
"c
lerical,, 
fo
ll
owing 
his 
FINRA 
ban 
and 
that 
CASTILLERO's 
ownership 
rights 
had 
been 
terminated; 
(iii) 
that 
Fund 
Manager-I 
made 
all  decisions 
about 
which 
pre-IPO 
companies 
the 
StraightPath 
Funds 
sho
uld 
acq
uir
e; 
and 
(iv) 
that 
LANAIA 
was 
a contractor 
recruited 
and overseen 
by 
Fund 
Manager-1, 
but 
that 
MARTINSEN 
did 
not 
know 
what 
her 
role 
at 
StraightPath 
was, 
work 
with 
her, 
interact 
with 
her 
in a professional 
capacity
, or 
even 
know 
whether 
she 
was 
at the 
time 
still 
conducting 
consulting 
serv
ices 
for 
StraightPath. 
c. 
In 
text 
messages 
on 
or 
abou
t February 
4, 202
1, after 
SEC 
enforcement 
staff 
open
ed an 
investigation 
into 
StraightPath
, MARTINSEN, 
CASTILLERO, 
and 
LANAIA 
discussed 
mak
in
g Fund 
Manager
-1 the 
scapegoat 
with 
the 
SEC, 
in the 
event 
the 
SEC 
identified 
any 
problems 
with 
StraightPath
' s operations. 
MARTINS
EN 
then 
added, 
"Fran is 
goin
g 
to 
wamboosle 
the 
sec 
lady 
tomonow. 
They 
will 
talk 
weather 
for 
45 
min 
and 
the 
lady 
wi
ll forget 
what 
she's 
looldng 
for.
" 
7 

d. 
In 
early 
May 
2021, MARTINSEN 
and 
CASTILLERO 
agree
d  t
o  and 
did 
delete  certain 
emai
l  records 
that 
had 
been 
called 
fo
r  b
y  an 
SEC 
subpo
ena 
and 
then 
falsely 
represented 
to 
SEC 
staff 
th
at the 
ema
ils had n
ever 
existed
. 
Statutory 
Allegations 
COUNT 
ONE 
(Conspiracy 
to 
Commit 
Securities 
Fraud, 
Wire 
Fraud, 
and 
Investment 
Adviser 
Fraud) 
The Grand 
Jury 
charges: 
10
. 
T
he allegations 
contained 
in paragrap
hs 1 throu
gh 9 
of 
this I  ndic
tme
nt 
are 
rep
eate
d 
and 
rea
llc
ged 
as 
if 
fully 
set 
forth 
herein
. 
1
1. 
From 
at 
leas
t 
in 
or 
about 
2017 
through 
in 
or  about 
Apri
l  2022, 
in 
the  Southern 
District 
of 
New 
York 
and  elsew
here, 
MICHAEL 
CAST
ILLE
RO
,  a/k/a 
"M
ichael  Alejandro
," 
FRANCINE 
LANA
IA, 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN, 
the 
defe
ndants, 
and 
others 
known 
and 
unkn
own, 
wi
ll
fully 
and 
lmow
ingly  did 
combine
,  cons
pir
e, 
confederate
,  and 
agree 
together 
and 
with 
eac
h other 
to commit 
offenses 
agai
nst the 
United 
State
s, to 
wit, securit
ies 
fraud 
in 
violation 
of 
Title 
15
,  U
nited 
Stat
es 
Co
de, 
Sectio
ns  78j(b) 
and 
78ff, 
and 
Title 
17
,  Code 
of 
Federal 
Regulation
s,  Sect
ion 
240.l0b-
5; 
wire 
fra
ud
, in 
viol  ation 
of 
Title 
18, 
United 
Stat
es 
Code, 
Section 
1343; 
and 
in
vestme
nt 
adviser 
frau
d, 
in 
violation 
of 
Title  15, 
Un
ited 
Stat
es 
Code, 
Sect
ions 
80b-6 
and 
80b-l 
7. 
1
2. 
It wa
s a part and 
an 
obj ect 
of 
the conspira
cy 
that 
MI
CHAEL 
CAST
ILLE
RO
, a/k/a 
"Mich
ael  Alejan
dro," 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA
,  and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN
,  the  defendan
t
s, 
and 
others 
known 
and 
unknown, 
willfully 
and k
now
ingly, dir
ectly 
and 
indir
ectly, 
by 
the use 
of 
a means 
and 
instrum
entality 
of 
inters
tate 
commerce, 
and 
of 
the mail
s and 
of 
a facility 
of a national 
secur
ities 
exch
ange, 
wou
ld 
and 
did use 
and 
emp
loy, 
in 
connec
ti
on 
wi
th 
the purc
hase 
and 
sale 
of 
a secur
ity, 
8 

a  manipulative 
and 
dece
ptiv
e  device 
and 
contrivance, 
in 
violation 
of 
Titl
e 
17
,  Code 
of 
Federa
l 
Regulations, 
Section 
240.l0b-5, 
by: 
(a) 
emp
loyin
g  a  device, 
scheme, 
an
d  artifice 
to 
defr
aud; 
(b) 
making 
an 
untrue 
statement 
of 
a material 
fact and 
om
ittin
g to 
state 
a material 
fact 
necessary 
in 
order 
to 
make 
the 
sta
tement
s made, 
in the 
light 
of 
the 
circumstances 
und
er which 
they 
were 
made, 
not 
misleading; 
and 
(c) 
engaging 
in 
an 
act, 
practice, 
and 
course 
of 
business 
which 
operated 
and 
would 
operate 
as 
a fraud 
and 
deceit 
upon 
a person, 
in 
violation 
of 
Title  15, 
United 
States 
Code, 
Sections 
78j(b) 
and 
78ff, 
and 
Title 
17
, Code 
of 
Federal 
Regulations, 
Section 
240.l0b-5. 
13
. 
It was 
a further 
part 
and 
an 
object 
of 
the 
conspiracy 
that 
MICHAEL 
CASTILLERO, 
a/k/a 
"Michae
l  Alejandro," 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA, 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN, 
the 
defendants, 
and 
others 
known 
and 
unknown, 
know
ingly 
having devised 
and 
intending 
to 
devise 
a scheme 
and 
art
ifice 
to 
defraud, 
and 
for 
obtaining 
money 
and 
property 
by 
means 
of 
false 
and 
fraudulent 
pretenses, 
representations, 
and 
promises, 
would 
and 
did 
transmit 
and 
cause 
to 
be transmitted 
by 
means 
of 
wire 
communication 
in 
inter
stat
e  and 
foreign 
commerce, 
writings, 
sig
ns, 
signa
ls, 
picture
s,  and 
sounds 
for 
the 
purpose 
of 
execut
ing s
uch 
scheme 
and 
artifice, 
in 
violation 
of 
Title 
18
, United 
States 
Code, 
Section 
1343. 
14. 
It was 
a further 
part 
and 
an 
object 
of 
the 
conspiracy 
that 
Ml 
CHAEL 
CAST
ILL
ERO, 
a/k/a 
"Mic
hael  Ale
jandro
," 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA, 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN, 
the  defendants, 
and 
others 
known 
and 
unknown, 
while 
acting 
as 
inv
estment 
advisors, 
willfully 
and 
knowingly 
wou
ld 
and 
did 
use 
the mails 
and 
a means 
and 
instrwnentality 
of 
interstate 
cormne
rce, 
directly 
and 
indirectly, 
to 
(a) 
emp
loy 
a device, 
scheme, 
and 
art
ifice 
to 
defraud 
clients 
and 
prospective 
clients; 
(b) 
engage 
in 
a transaction, 
practice, 
and 
course 
of 
business 
which 
operated 
as 
a fraud 
an.d 
deceit 
upon 
clients 
and 
prospective 
clients; 
and 
(c) 
engage 
in 
an 
act, 
practice, 
and 
course 
of 
business 
9 

which 
was 
fraudulent, 
deceptive, 
and 
manipulative, 
in 
violation 
of 
Title 
15, 
United 
States 
Code
, 
Sections 
80b-6 
and 
80b-l 
7. 
Overt 
Acts 
15. 
In 
furtherance 
of 
the 
conspiracy 
and 
to 
effect 
the 
ille
gal  objects 
thereof
,  the 
following 
overt 
acts, 
among 
others, 
were 
committed 
and 
caused 
to 
be 
committed in 
the 
Southern 
District 
ofNew 
York 
and elsewhere: 
a. 
On 
or 
about 
September 
10, 
2018, 
MARTINSEN 
dir
ecte
d  LANAIA 
to 
conceal 
CAS
TILLERO's 
affil
i
at
ion 
with 
StraightPath 
by 
blind 
copying 
him 
on 
emails 
with 
investors. 
b. 
On 
or 
about 
August 
19, 
2020, 
MARTINSEN 
solicited 
inv
estor 
funds 
by 
claiming 
that 
shar
es 
of 
a particular 
pre-IPO 
company 
were 
available 
for 
purchase, 
despite 
having 
just 
been 
informed 
by 
CASTILLERO 
that 
such 
shares 
were 
"com
pletely 
sold 
out." 
c. 
On 
or 
abou
t 
February 
2, 
2021, 
CASTILLERO, 
LANAIA, 
and 
MARTINSEN 
agreed  to 
and 
did 
charge 
an 
investor 
$50 
per 
share 
for 
a  particular 
pre-IPO 
company, 
despite 
having 
just 
purchased 
tho
se 
shares 
at prices 
ranging 
from 
$24 
to 
$33 
per 
share. 
d. 
On 
or 
about 
August 
5, 
2021, 
MARTINSEN 
directed 
the 
transfer 
of 
$4.7 
million 
in 
investor 
funds 
to 
the 
SPVP 
ope
ratin
g  account 
and, 
thereafter
,  paid 
nearly 
all 
of 
that 
money 
to 
him
self, 
CASTILLERO, 
and 
LINAIA. 
(Title 
18
, United 
States 
Code, 
Section 
371). 

COUNT 
TWO 
(Securities 
Fraud
) 
The 
Grand 
Juxy 
further 
charges: 
16. 
The 
allegations 
contained 
in 
paragraphs 
1 through 
9 and 
15 
of 
this 
Indictment 
are 
repe
ated 
and 
realleged 
as 
if fully set 
forth 
here
in. 
17. 
From 
at 
le
ast  in 
or 
about 
2017 
through 
in  o
r  about 
Apri
l  2022, 
in 
the 
Southern 
District 
of 
New 
York 
and 
elsewhere, 
MICHAEL 
CAST
ILL
ERO, 
a/k/a 
"Michael 
Alejandro," 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA, 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN 
the 
defendants
,  willfu
lly  and  knowingly, 
directly 
and 
indirect
ly, 
by 
the 
use 
of 
a means 
and 
instrumen
tality 
of 
int
ers
tate 
commerce, 
and 
of 
the mai
ls and 
of 
a faci
lity 
of 
a national 
sec
urities 
exc
hange, 
used 
and 
employe
d, in conn
ect
i
on 
with 
the 
puichase 
and 
sale 
of 
a  sec
urity
,  a 
manipulative 
and 
decep
tive 
device 
and 
contr
ivance, 
in 
violation 
of 
Title 17, 
Code 
of 
Federal 
Re
gulation
s,  Section 
240
.l0b-
5, by: 
(a) 
employ
ing a device
, 
scheme, 
and 
artifice 
to 
defraud; 
(b) 
making 
an 
untrue 
sta
tement 
of 
a material 
fact 
and 
omitting 
to 
state 
a  material 
fact 
necessary 
in 
order 
to 
make 
the 
stateme
nts  made, 
in 
the 
light 
of 
the 
circumstances 
under 
which 
they 
were 
made, 
not 
mis
leading; 
and 
( c) 
engaging 
in 
an 
act, 
practice, 
and 
course 
of 
business 
which 
operated 
and 
wou
ld operate 
as 
a fraud 
and 
deceit 
upon 
a 
person, 
in 
violation 
of 
Title 
15, United 
States 
Code, 
Sections 
78j (b) 
and 
78ff, 
and 
Tit
le 17, 
Code 
of 
Federa
l 
Regulations, 
Section 
240.l0b
-5, 
to 
wit, 
CAST
ILLERO
, LANAIA, 
and 
MARTINSEN, 
and 
others 
working 
at 
th
eir 
dir
ectio
n, 
ma
de 
false 
and 
misleading 
statements 
to 
inve
stors 
about 
StraightPath's 
operations, 
and 
the 
pricing 
and 
avai
labi
lity 
of 
StraightPath's 
pr
e-IPO 
shares, 
and 
misappropriated 
investor 
fund
s. 
(Title 
15, 
Unit
ed 
States 
Code, 
Sections 
78j(b) 
and 
78ff; 
Title 
18
, United 
States 
Code
, Section 
2). 
11 

The 
Grand 
Jury 
further 
charges: 
COUNT 
THREE 
(Wire 
Fraud) 
18. 
The 
allegations 
contai
ned in 
paragraphs 
1 t
hr
ough 
9 and 
15 
oft
hls Indictment 
are 
repeated 
and 
realleged 
as 
if fu
ll
y set 
fort
h her
ein . 
19. 
From 
at 
least 
in 
or  about 
20
17 through 
in 
or 
abou
t  April 
2022, 
in 
the 
So
uthern 
District 
of 
New 
York 
and 
elsewhere, 
MICHAEL 
CASTILLERO, 
a/k/a 
"Michae
l  Alejandro
," 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA, 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN 
the 
defendants
,  willfully 
and 
knowingly, 
having 
devised 
and int
ending 
to devise 
a scheme 
and 
artifice 
to 
defraud, 
and 
for 
obtaining 
money 
and 
prope
rty 
by 
means 
of 
false 
and 
fraud
ulent 
pre
tenses, 
representations
, and 
promises, 
transmitted 
and 
caused 
to be 
transmitt
ed 
by means 
of 
wire 
commun
icat
ion in 
int
ers
tate 
and 
foreign 
commerce, 
wr
itin
gs, 
signs, signals, 
pictures 
and 
so
und
s for 
the 
purpose 
of 
execu
ting 
suc
h scheme 
and 
ar
tifice, 
to 
wit, 
CASTILLERO, 
LANAIA
, and 
MARTINSEN, 
and 
others working 
at their 
direc
tion, 
made 
fa
lse 
a
nd 
misleading 
stateme
nt
s to 
inv
estor
s abo
ut  Straig
htPa
th
's 
opera
tions,  and 
the 
pricing 
and 
avai
labi
lity 
of 
Straig
htPath's 
pre-IPO 
shar
es, 
and 
misappropriated 
in
ves
tor 
funds, 
including 
using 
interstate 
wires, 
some 
of 
wh
ich 
tr
ansi
ted 
thrnu
gh 
the 
Southern 
Di
stri
ct 
of 
New 
York
. 
(Title 
18, 
United 
States 
Co
de, Sections 
1
343 
and 
2). 
C
OUNTFOUR 
(Investment 
Adviser 
Fraud) 
The G
rand 
Jury 
further 
charges: 
20. 
The 
allegations 
conta
ined 
in 
paragraphs 
1 through 
9 and 
15 
of 
this 
Indictment 
are 
repeated 
and 
realleged 
as 
if 
fully 
set 
forth 
here
in. 
2
1. 
From 
at 
least 
in 
or 
about 
20
17  through 
in 
or 
abo
ut  Apr
il  2022, 
in 
the 
So
uthern 
District 
of 
New 
Yo
rk  and 
elsew
here
,  MICHAEL 
CAST
ILLERO
,  a/k
/ a  "Michae
l  Alejandro," 
12 

FRANCINE 
LANAIA, 
and 
BRJAN 
MARTINSEN 
the  defendant
s, 
while 
acting 
as 
investm
en
t 
adviso
rs, 
willfully 
and 
lmowin
gly  used 
the 
mails 
and 
a means 
and 
instrum
en
ta
lity 
of 
inter
state 
commerce, 
dir
ectly 
and 
indir
ectly, 
to 
(a) 
employ 
a device, 
scheme
, and 
artifice 
to 
defraud 
clients 
and 
prospective 
clients; 
(b) 
engage 
in 
a tran
sact
ion
, practice, 
and 
cours
e 
of 
bu
sine
ss which 
oper
ated 
as 
a fraud 
and 
deceit 
upon 
clients and 
prospectjve 
cli
en
t
s; 
and 
(c) 
engage 
in 
an 
act, 
pra
ctice, 
and 
course 
of 
bu
s
in
ess 
which 
was 
fraudulent, 
dece
ptive, 
and 
manipulat
ive, 
to 
wit, 
CASTILLE
RO
, 
LANA
IA
, and 
MARTINSEN, 
in violation 
of 
their 
fiduci
ary duties
, e  ngage
d 
in 
a sche
me 
to defra
ud 
their 
clients 
regardin
g StraightPath's 
op
era
tion
s and 
inves
tments, 
and 
misappropriated 
client 
funds 
for 
their 
own 
enric
hm
ent. 
(Title 
15
, United 
Stat
es 
Code, 
Sections 
80b-6 
and 
80b
-17; 
Titl
e 18, United 
States 
Code, 
Section 
2). 
COUNT 
FIVE 
(Conspiracy 
to 
Obstruct 
Justice) 
The 
Grand 
Jur
y further 
charges: 
22. 
The 
allegations 
contained 
in paragraphs 
1 through 9 and 
15 
of 
this Indi
ctment 
are 
repeated 
and 
reallege
d as 
if 
full
y set 
fo1th 
her
ein. 
23
. 
In 
or 
abo
ut 
May 
2021, 
in 
the  Southern 
Di
strict 
of 
New 
York 
and 
else
wh
ere, 
MICHAEL 
CAST
ILLERO, 
a/k/a 
"Mich
ael 
Alejandro," 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINS
EN, 
the 
defendants, 
and 
oth
ers 
known 
and 
unknown
, 
willf1-11ly 
and 
kn
owin
gly 
combined, 
conspired, 
confederated 
and 
agreed 
toge
ther 
and 
with 
eac
h  other 
to 
commi
t  an 
offense 
against 
the Unit
ed 
States, 
to 
wit, 
obstruction 
of 
ju
stice, 
in 
violation 
of 
Title 
18
, U
nited 
States 
Code, 
Section 
1519
. 
24. 
It was 
a part 
and 
an 
object 
of 
the 
consp
iracy 
that MICHAEL 
CASTILL
ER
O, 
a/k/a 
"M
ichae
l Alejan
dro," 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN, 
the 
defen
dants, and others known 
and 
unknown, 
knowingly 
would 
and 
did 
alter, 
destroy, mutilate, 
concea
l, cove
r up
, falsify
, and 
make 
a false 
ent
1-y 
13 

in 
a record, 
document
, and 
tan
gibl
e object 
with 
the 
intent 
to 
imp
ede, 
obstruct, 
and 
influ
ence 
the 
investigation 
and 
proper 
administration 
of 
a  matt
er 
within 
th
e juri
sdiction 
of 
a department 
and 
agency 
of 
th
e United 
States, 
to 
wit, 
CAST
ILLERO 
and 
MARTINS
EN 
agreed 
to 
and 
did 
del
ete 
Straigh
tPath 
email 
accounts 
that 
had 
been 
subpo
enaed  by 
the 
SE
C 
as 
part 
of 
an 
ongo
ing 
inv
estig
ation 
and 
then 
false
ly repre
sented 
to 
SEC 
staff 
that such 
emai
l acc
ounts 
had 
never 
existed, 
in 
vio
lation 
of 
Title 
18, United 
State
s Code, 
Section 
1519
. 
Ove11 
Acts 
25. 
In 
furth
erance 
of 
the  con
spirac
y 
and 
to  effect 
the 
ille
gal 
ob
ject 
th
ereof
,  the 
following 
overt 
acts,  among 
oth
ers, 
were 
committ
ed 
and 
caused 
to 
be committed 
in 
the Southern 
Di
str
ict 
of 
New 
York 
and 
elsewhere: 
a. 
On 
or 
about 
May 
1, 2
021, after 
havin
g receive
d a subpoen
a from 
th
e SEC 
seeking 
Strai
ghtPath 
reco
rds, 
MARTINSEN 
stated 
that 
a  pai1icular 
Strai
ghtPath 
sales 
age
nt'
s 
email 
communication 
"put
s  us 
at 
risk," 
ai1d 
CAS
TILL
ERO 
agreed, 
remai
·kin
g, 
"An 
asshole 
regu
lator 
would 
have 
a fie
ld 
day.
" 
b. 
On 
or 
about 
May 
5, 
2021, 
CAST
ILLERO 
and 
MARTINS
EN 
agreed 
to 
tell 
the 
SEC 
fal
sely that 
StraightPat
h sales 
age
nts 
"don't 
have 
emai
ls," 
and 
to delete 
the 
relevant 
email 
acco
unt
s rather 
than 
produce 
respo
nsive 
records 
in 
response 
to 
the 
S
EC's 
subpoe
na
. 
(Tit
le 
18, 
Unit
ed 
States 
Code, Section 
37
1)
. 
COUNT 
SIX 
(Obstruction 
of 
Justice) 
The Grand 
Jm
y furth
er charges: 
26. 
The allegatio
ns contained 
in 
par
agraph
s  1 
th
rough 
9, 
1
5, 
and 
25 
of 
this 
Indictm
ent 
ai·e 
repeated 
and 
realleged 
as 
if 
fully 
set 
forth 
herein. 
14 

27. 
In 
or 
abo
ut 
May 
2021, 
in 
the 
Southern 
District 
of 
New 
York 
and 
elsewhere, 
MICHAEL 
CASTILLERO, 
a/lda 
"Michae
l 
Alejandro," 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN, 
the 
defendants, 
knowingly 
alte
red
, destroyed
, mutilated, 
concealed, 
covered 
up, 
falsified, 
and 
made 
a 
false 
entry 
in 
a record, 
document
,  and 
tangible 
obj ect, 
with 
the 
intent 
to 
impede, 
obstmct
, and 
influence 
the 
investigation 
and 
proper 
administration 
of 
a  matter 
within 
the 
juri
s
di
ction 
of 
a 
department 
and 
agency 
of 
the 
United 
States, 
to  wit, 
MARTINSEN 
dire
cted 
CAST
ILLERO 
to 
delete 
StraightPath 
emai
l accounts, 
which 
CAST
ILL
ERO 
did
,  that 
had 
been 
subpoenae
d  by 
the 
SEC 
as 
prut 
of 
an 
ongoing 
inv
estigation 
and 
then 
false
ly 
represented 
to 
SEC 
staff 
that 
such 
email 
accounts 
had 
never 
existed. 
(Title 
18
, United 
Sta
tes 
Code, 
Sect
ion
s 1519 
and 
2). 
FORFEITURE 
ALLEGATIONS 
28
. 
As 
a  result 
of 
committing 
one 
or  more 
of 
the 
offenses 
charged 
in 
Cou
nts  One 
through 
Four 
of 
thi
s 
Indictment, 
MICHAEL 
CASTILLERO, 
a/k/a 
"Michael 
Alejandro,
" 
FRANCINE 
LANAIA, 
and 
BRIAN 
MARTINSEN 
the 
defendants, 
shall 
forfeit 
to 
the 
United 
States
, pursuant 
to 
Title 
18
, United 
States 
Code, 
Section 
981(a)(l)(C) and 
Title 
28, 
United 
States 
Code, 
Sectio
n 246
1,  all 
property
, rea
l  and personal, 
that 
constitutes 
or 
is  derived 
from 
proceeds 
traceable 
to 
the 
commission 
of 
said 
offenses 
that 
the 
defendants 
personally 
obtained, 
including 
but 
not 
limit
ed 
to 
sum 
of 
money 
of 
at least 
$3 
86 
million
. 
Subst
itut
e Assets 
Provision 
29. 
If 
any 
of 
the 
above-described 
forfeitab
le  property, 
as 
a result 
of 
any 
act 
or 
omiss
ion 
by 
the 
defendant
s: 
a. 
cannot 
be locate
d upon 
the 
exercise 
of 
due 
dili
gence
; 
b. 
has 
been 
transferred 
or 
sold 
to
, or 
depos
ited 
with
, a third 
party; 
15 

c. 
has 
bee
n plac
ed 
beyond 
the 
jurisdictio
n 
of 
the 
court; 
d. 
has 
bee
n subs
tantially 
diminished 
in 
va
lue; 
or 
c. 
has 
bee
n comming
l
ed 
with 
other 
property 
which 
cannot 
be 
divided 
without 
diffi
culty
; 
it 
is the 
int
ent 
of 
the United 
States, 
pur
sua
nt to 
Tit
le 21, 
Unjted 
States 
Code, 
Section 
853(p), 
and 
Title 
28, 
United 
States 
Code 
Section 
246
1, 
t o seek 
forfeiture 
of 
any 
other 
proper
ty 
of 
the 
defendants 
up 
to 
the 
value 
of 
the 
fo
rfeitable 
property 
des
cribed 
above. 
(Tit
le 18, 
United 
States 
Code, 
Section 
98l(a)(
l )(C); 
Title 
21, 
Uni
t
ed 
State
s Code, 
Section 
853(p); 
Title 
28, 
United 
States 
Code, 
Section 
2461.) 
16 
})~~ 
DAMIAN 
WILLIAMS 
Uni
t
ed 
States Attorney