Securities Industry Commentator by Bill Singer Esq

secretly acquired large blocks of stock in publicly traded companies, including Virtual Piggy, Inc. (ticker symbol "VPIG"), and Red Mountain Resources, Inc. (ticker symbol "RDMP"), to manipulate the market in those stocks.  As alleged, Appel acquired title to the shares in the names of nominees in order to hide his ownership block from investors and made between $3,000,000 and $4,000,000 from his scheme.  Using nominee accounts was necessary because he previously lost his license and was barred by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority ("FINRA") from selling securities or associating with any member firm.

The information further alleges that Appel and his co-schemers manipulated the stock price by taking numerous actions that were hidden from investors and security regulators including: working as a paid "consultant" to recruit investors, raise capital, and get the companies running; engaging in coordinated buying and selling, which he closely monitored, to raise the share price; and preventing co-conspirators from selling their shares without his permission.  The information further alleges that Appel encouraged unwitting investors to buy large blocks of stock by touting the companies' supposed impending success while, at the same time, selling off shares from his nominee accounts-sometimes to those same investors.  Appel also allegedly traded on inside information that he obtained as a result of his "consulting" work for the companies, including the status of the companies' efforts to get listed on NASDAQ.  As alleged, none of these facts was disclosed to the investing public in any of the public filings the company and Appel were required to make.

• Securities Industry Commentator
• Bill Singer