Today, shares of InterOil Corporation (NYSE: IOC) tumbled down $9.27 per share to close at $45.82 per share, a drop of 16.83% in market value. The stock lost over $300 million in market value in a single day!
A day later, on March 25, 2010, Kaja Whitehouse from the New York Post reported:
After preparing for his turn as a hedge-fund trader by visiting trading floors of small brokerage houses, LaBeouf in the April issue of GQ talked up the stock of an oil and natural gas exploration company that has yet to produce any of either.
"IOC's momentum is major, and it will surprise to the upside," LaBeouf said in a text message to the GQ article's author, Adam Sachs, using the trader lingo he apparently picked up while prepping for the film.
The 23-year-old star of the "Transformers" franchise was referring to InterOil, a Canadian firm with the New York Stock Exchange ticker symbol IOC that says it's searching for natural gas and oil in Papua New Guinea.
However, after seven years of exploration and drilling, InterOil has yet to produce any proven commercial oil or gas reserves.
Nevertheless, InterOil's stock is up an astounding 385 percent since the start of 2009 -- a feat critics attribute to InterOil's flurry of uplifting press releases about its drilling and exploration plans. [Emphasis added.]
On April 21, 2010, Independent Film Corporation (IFC) posted a videotape on Youtube showing John Thomas Financial CEO Thomas Belesis shouting to his brokers, "InterOil is at $67, hopefully going to $85!"
Thomas Belesis sounds like he's running what's known as a boiler room operation. He did not want anyone to see that video of him pumping InterOil and filed a lawsuit seeking to take down that video against Independent Film Corporation and Honest Engine Inc.
On September 7, 2011, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) fined John Thomas Financial $275,000 for overcharging its customers.
With InterOil closing at $45.82 per share today, actor Shia Labeouf and John Thomas Financial CEO Thomas Belesis have egg on their faces.
Recommended reading
White Collar Fraud - Can Shia LaBeouf Help Shed Light on a Stock Market Manipulation Scheme Involving InterOil and John Thomas Financial? by Sam E. Antar
Financial Investigator - AMBER Ready: The Moonlighting Cop, The Wanna Be Mogul and The Killer App That Wasn’t by Roddy Boyd
Written by,
Sam E. Antar
Disclosure
I am a convicted felon and a former CPA. As the criminal CFO of Crazy Eddie, I helped my cousin Eddie Antar and other members of his family mastermind one of the largest securities frauds uncovered during the 1980's. I committed my crimes in cold-blood for fun and profit, and simply because I could.
If it weren't for the heroic efforts of the FBI, SEC, Postal Inspector's Office, US Attorney's Office, and class action plaintiff's lawyers who investigated, prosecuted, and sued me, I would still be the criminal CFO of Crazy Eddie today.
There is a saying, "It takes one to know one." Today, I work very closely with the FBI, IRS, SEC, Justice Department, and other federal and state law enforcement agencies in training them to identify and catch white-collar criminals. Often, I refer cases to them as an independent whistleblower. In addition, I teach about white-collar crime for government entities, professional organizations, businesses, and colleges and universities.
I do not seek or want forgiveness for my vicious crimes from my victims. I plan on frying in hell with other white-collar criminals for a very long time. My past sins are unforgivable.
I do not have any position in InterOil securities.
