2025-05-22 sec-litreleases litigation_release 66 KB 2,547 chars

SEC v. Elliot Maza; and John H. Ford, No. LR-26308, Southern District of New York (May 22, 2025) — Press Release

raw: Elliot Maza; John H. Ford

Elliot Maza; John H. Ford, No. LR-26308 (S.D.N.Y. May 22, 2025)

Caption: SEC v. Elliot Maza, et al.

summary

The SEC obtained final judgments against Elliot Maza and John H. Ford for market manipulation schemes that generated over $27 million through unlawful stock sales.

paragraph

Elliot Maza and John H. Ford faced charges for participating in fraudulent schemes that generated more than $27 million. Maza was charged with concealing corporate control in public filings, while Ford was accused of writing misleading articles without disclosing compensation. The defendants were ordered to pay civil penalties of $578,095 and $100,000, respectively, alongside various industry bars.

narrative

The SEC obtained final judgments against Elliot Maza and John H. Ford for their roles in fraudulent schemes that generated over $27 million from unlawful stock sales. Maza, acting as a CEO, signed public filings that concealed the true control of a public company, while Ford was paid to write materially misleading articles without disclosing his compensation. Maza consented to a final judgment involving violations of the Securities Act and Exchange Act, resulting in a $578,095 civil penalty, an officer-and-director bar, and a penny stock bar. Additionally, Maza was suspended from appearing and practicing before the SEC as an attorney and accountant. Ford also consented to a final judgment for similar violations, incurring a penny stock bar and a $100,000 civil penalty. These judgments conclude litigation that began in September 2018 in the Southern District of New York.

Enriched metadata

Scheme: market-manipulation (100%)
Court: Southern District of New York
Outcome: settled
Entity: Barry Honig

Classified market-manipulation(confidence 100%). EDGAR detection: forms SC 13D/G/13F· recall 53% / precision 9%. detection rule →

Extracted insights

Dollar amounts 3

$27.00M $27 million $10M–$100M
$578K $578,095 $100K–$1M
$100K $100,000 $100K–$1M

Entities 10

person Elliot Maza
agency from appearing and practicing before the sec as an attorney and as an accountant
person jack kaufman
person john h. ford
person Jon Daniels
person katherine bromberg
person michael paley
person ricky tong
agency Securities and Exchange Commission
agency the sec's investigation

Triples 16

Securities And Exchange Commission obtained final judgments Elliot Maza and John H. Ford
Elliot Maza signed public filings that concealed the group's control
John H. Ford was paid by other defendants to write favorable and materially misleading articles about companies
Securities And Exchange Commission charged Elliot Maza and John H. Ford with participating in fraudulent schemes that generated over $27 million from unlawful stock sales
Elliot Maza consented to a final judgment permanently enjoining him from violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and aiding and abetting violations of Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act and Rule 15d-1 thereunder
Elliot Maza agreed to be suspended from appearing and practicing before the SEC as an attorney and as an accountant
John H. Ford consented to a final judgment permanently enjoining him from violations of Securities Act Sections 17(a) and 17(b), and Exchange Act Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5 thereunder
Securities And Exchange Commission ordered Elliot Maza to pay a $578,095 civil penalty
Securities And Exchange Commission ordered John H. Ford to pay a $100,000 civil penalty
Katherine Bromberg conducted the SEC's investigation
Jon Daniels conducted the SEC's investigation
Ricky Tong conducted the SEC's investigation
Michael Paley conducted the SEC's investigation
Thomas P. Smith, Jr. supervised Jon Daniels, Ricky Tong, and Michael Paley
Katherine Bromberg handled the litigation
Jack Kaufman supervised Katherine Bromberg

View original SEC litigation releasesec.gov

Extracted body text (2,547c)

U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 26308 / May 22, 2025 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Barry Honig, et al., 18 Civ. 08175 (S.D.N.Y. filed Sept. 7, 2018) SEC Obtains Final Judgments Against Two Individuals in Market Manipulation Case On April 25, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission obtained final judgments against defendants Elliot Maza and John H. Ford, who had been previously charged with participating in fraudulent schemes that generated over $27 million from unlawful stock sales. The SEC’s complaint, filed in federal district court in the Southern District of New York on September 7, 2018, and amended on March 8, 2019, and March 11, 2020, alleged that Maza, as CEO of a public company that was controlled by other defendants charged in the action, signed public filings that concealed the group’s control. The complaint also alleged that Ford was paid by other defendants to write favorable and materially misleading articles about companies without disclosing his compensation. Maza consented to the entry of a final judgment permanently enjoining him from violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and aiding and abetting violations of Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act and Rule 15d-1 thereunder, imposing an officer-and-director bar and a penny stock bar, and ordering him to pay a $578,095 civil penalty. Maza also agreed to be suspended from appearing and practicing before the SEC as an attorney and as an accountant. The order does not provide Maza an express right to apply for reinstatement. Ford consented to entry of a final judgment permanently enjoining him from violations of Securities Act Sections 17(a) and 17(b), and Exchange Act Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, imposing a penny stock bar, and ordering him to pay a $100,000 civil penalty. The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Katherine Bromberg of the SEC’s Boston Regional Office and Jon Daniels, Ricky Tong, and Michael Paley under the supervision of Thomas P. Smith, Jr., all of the SEC’s New York Regional Office. The litigation has been handled by Katherine Bromberg, and supervised by Jack Kaufman, also of the SEC’s New York Regional Office. For further information, see Press Release No. 2018-182, September 7, 2018, Litigation Release No. 24262, September 7, 2018, Litigation Release No. 24431, March 22, 2019, Litigation Release No. 24529, July 12, 2019 and Litigation Release No. 24765, March 11, 2020.

OCR text (2,547c · html-text · 99% conf)