In light of date errors made in presenting its case, the SEC has opted to voluntarily dismiss securities fraud proceedings against iX Global and Debt Box.

The revelation was made in a January 30th surreply filing, made in response to why the SEC shouldn’t be sanctioned.

BehindMLM has previously covered the SEC’s date errors so I won’t go into them again. Suffice to say mistakes were made by attorneys that should have known better.

As of January 30th, the SEC states in its surreply that it

is continuing to take steps to address the issues the Court identified and to identify any other issues that may warrant further consideration.

As part of those steps,

experienced trial attorneys from the Commission’s Denver Regional Office have been assigned to this matter.

It appears the intent is to refile the case at some point with these attorneys at the helm.

To that end;

The Commission has authorized the filing of a motion to dismiss this action without prejudice, which will be forthcoming.

Both Debt Box and iX Global have asked the court for monetary sanctions, which the SEC has opposed on legal grounds.

As alleged by the SEC, and holding true irrespective of whether SEC attorneys got some dates wrong, iX Global and Debt Box orchestrated a fraudulent investment scheme to the tune of ~$110 million.

Whereas authorities in the US haven’t filed criminal charges, Indian authorities have been busy dismantling iX Global’s money laundering operations.

This began with the arrest of Sailesh Pandey in October 2022.

Ringleader Viraj Patil was arrested last month, putting a stop to iX Global continue to defraud investors in India.

At time of publication Patil remains remanded to the custody of the Enforcement Directorate.

Criminal charges have also been filed against iX Global CEO Joe Martinez (right).

Martinez’s Indian charges pertain to laundering of iX Global investor funds through TP Global FX, a fraudulent investment scheme run by Patil.

Martinez is believed to have been in India last month but managed to get back to the US without arrest.

An open arrest warrant remains in place, making Martinez a wanted fugitive.

On the Debt Box side of things, a BehindMLM reader has tied money laundering operations to Vertex Global FZCO.

Vertex Global FZCO is another Dubai shell company owned by Patil.

Whether the DOJ files its own criminal case in the US pertaining to the same illegal activity remains to be seen.

In the meantime, stay tuned for a decision on sanctions against the SEC.

 

Update 6th February 2024 – The SEC filed its Motion to Dismiss on January 31st.

If granted, the SEC writes it will

thoroughly review the record, take investigative steps as appropriate, and engage with Defendants and Relief Defendants to determine whether to file a new complaint and the scope of any re-filed complaint.

The SEC advises the court it will file a Status Report within 90 days of a decision on its motion, advising what it will do after the above course of action is concluded.

A decision on the SEC’s motion remains pending.

 

Update 19th March 2024 – The SEC has been found to have acted in bad faith, with respect to obtaining ex-parte relief.

Sanctions limited to covering costs have been ordered. The SEC’s Motion to Dismiss, which would have effectively reset the case, has also been denied.

 

Update 30th May 2024 – On motion of the SEC, their securities fraud case against Debt Box and iX Global has been voluntarily dismissed.