MARK ANDREW MOORE, has been indicted on charges of grand larceny, securities fraud, scheme to defraud, and tax fraud
Manhattan District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau announced today the indictment and arrest of a man who defrauded more than 50 individuals in at least six states including Virginia, Maryland, Massachusetts, California, Nevada, and Georgia by falsely holding himself out as the CEO of an online fitness magazine and soliciting investments in his fictitious company.
MARK ANDREW MOORE, 40, has been indicted on charges of grand larceny, securities fraud, scheme to defraud, and tax fraud. The crimes charged in the indictment occurred between March 2007 and April 2009.
The investigation leading to today’s indictment and arrest revealed that MOORE claimed to be the Chairman, President, and CEO of eS-prit International, Inc., a “social networking” Internet-based company. MOORE represented to his investors that users of the company’s Web site could communicate with experts in the fields of health, fitness, and wellness. MOORE received money from more than fifty victims, most of whom MOORE met at an investment club that convened in the Washington, D.C. area. He falsely told his victims, who were largely unsophisticated investors, that their stock purchases were at prices “below the official price.” In reality, the stock was not publicly traded at all. In exchange for their investments, MOORE sent the victims bogus stock certificates, indicating that they owned shares of stock in eS-prit International, Inc.
The investigation further revealed that eS-prit International, Inc. existed in form only. The address listed as the administrative headquarters of the company was in reality a post office box MOORE rented. Individuals listed as serving on the Board of Directors of eS-prit International, Inc. did not know they were on the Board and had never even heard of the company. The Web site that MOORE trumpeted, http://es-prit.com, was a mere skeleton of a Web site, without any of the links activated, including those to the “experts.”
MOORE used the lion’s share of the $365,000 he received from the investors to pay his personal expenses. The investigation revealed that he spent over $100,000 on restaurant meals and bar tabs; clothing and accessories, including one Louis Vuitton bag that MOORE purchased for over $3,500; travel and entertainment; and his family’s cell phones and cell phone bills, cable television service, and gym memberships. MOORE also took more than $200,000 in cash. The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance has determined that MOORE did not pay taxes on any of the money that he stole, used, and spent.
MOORE has a previous felony conviction for GRAND LARCENY for stealing more than $38,000 from Hunter College, his former employer, in 2000. MOORE used almost $15,000 of the money he stole from his investors in his current scam to pay the restitution he owed in that case.
MOORE has been indicted on one count of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, a class C felony punishable by up to 7½ to 15 years in prison; 5 counts of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree and one count of Criminal Tax Fraud in the Third Degree, class D felonies punishable by up to 3½ to 7 years in prison; six counts of Securities Fraud and one count of Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree, class E felonies punishable by up to 2 to 4 years in prison; and one count of Failure to File a Tax Return, a misdemeanor punishable by up to 1 year in jail. The defendant was arrested this morning and is scheduled to be arraigned today in State Supreme Court, Part 1.
The Securities and Exchange Commission referred the case to the District Attorney’s Office, and the agencies worked jointly on the investigation.
Mr. Morgenthau thanked the Securities and Exchange Commission; and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, including Acting Commissioner Jamie Woodward, Director of Investigations Peter Bloch, Deputy Director of Investigations Bruce Kato and Auditor for the Special Investigations Unit Virginia Urzi.
Assistant District Attorney Hope Korenstein of the Frauds Bureau presented the case to the grand jury with the assistance of Investigative Analyst Eunice Choi, under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Michael Kitsis and Assistant District Attorneys Jeannette Molina and Micki Shulman, bureau chief and deputy bureau chiefs, respectively. Senior Investigator Terence Hayes of the District Attorney’s Investigation Bureau assisted in the investigation under the supervision of Supervisory Investigator Jose Flores, and Joseph Pennisi and Terrence Mulderrig, Chief and Deputy Chief, respectively.
Defendant Information:
MARK ANDREW MOORE, 8/27/1969
865 Amsterdam Avenue
New York, New York
MARK ANDREW MOORE, 40, has been indicted on charges of grand larceny, securities fraud, scheme to defraud, and tax fraud. The crimes charged in the indictment occurred between March 2007 and April 2009.
The investigation leading to today’s indictment and arrest revealed that MOORE claimed to be the Chairman, President, and CEO of eS-prit International, Inc., a “social networking” Internet-based company. MOORE represented to his investors that users of the company’s Web site could communicate with experts in the fields of health, fitness, and wellness. MOORE received money from more than fifty victims, most of whom MOORE met at an investment club that convened in the Washington, D.C. area. He falsely told his victims, who were largely unsophisticated investors, that their stock purchases were at prices “below the official price.” In reality, the stock was not publicly traded at all. In exchange for their investments, MOORE sent the victims bogus stock certificates, indicating that they owned shares of stock in eS-prit International, Inc.
The investigation further revealed that eS-prit International, Inc. existed in form only. The address listed as the administrative headquarters of the company was in reality a post office box MOORE rented. Individuals listed as serving on the Board of Directors of eS-prit International, Inc. did not know they were on the Board and had never even heard of the company. The Web site that MOORE trumpeted, http://es-prit.com, was a mere skeleton of a Web site, without any of the links activated, including those to the “experts.”
MOORE used the lion’s share of the $365,000 he received from the investors to pay his personal expenses. The investigation revealed that he spent over $100,000 on restaurant meals and bar tabs; clothing and accessories, including one Louis Vuitton bag that MOORE purchased for over $3,500; travel and entertainment; and his family’s cell phones and cell phone bills, cable television service, and gym memberships. MOORE also took more than $200,000 in cash. The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance has determined that MOORE did not pay taxes on any of the money that he stole, used, and spent.
MOORE has a previous felony conviction for GRAND LARCENY for stealing more than $38,000 from Hunter College, his former employer, in 2000. MOORE used almost $15,000 of the money he stole from his investors in his current scam to pay the restitution he owed in that case.
MOORE has been indicted on one count of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, a class C felony punishable by up to 7½ to 15 years in prison; 5 counts of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree and one count of Criminal Tax Fraud in the Third Degree, class D felonies punishable by up to 3½ to 7 years in prison; six counts of Securities Fraud and one count of Scheme to Defraud in the First Degree, class E felonies punishable by up to 2 to 4 years in prison; and one count of Failure to File a Tax Return, a misdemeanor punishable by up to 1 year in jail. The defendant was arrested this morning and is scheduled to be arraigned today in State Supreme Court, Part 1.
The Securities and Exchange Commission referred the case to the District Attorney’s Office, and the agencies worked jointly on the investigation.
Mr. Morgenthau thanked the Securities and Exchange Commission; and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, including Acting Commissioner Jamie Woodward, Director of Investigations Peter Bloch, Deputy Director of Investigations Bruce Kato and Auditor for the Special Investigations Unit Virginia Urzi.
Assistant District Attorney Hope Korenstein of the Frauds Bureau presented the case to the grand jury with the assistance of Investigative Analyst Eunice Choi, under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Michael Kitsis and Assistant District Attorneys Jeannette Molina and Micki Shulman, bureau chief and deputy bureau chiefs, respectively. Senior Investigator Terence Hayes of the District Attorney’s Investigation Bureau assisted in the investigation under the supervision of Supervisory Investigator Jose Flores, and Joseph Pennisi and Terrence Mulderrig, Chief and Deputy Chief, respectively.
Defendant Information:
MARK ANDREW MOORE, 8/27/1969
865 Amsterdam Avenue
New York, New York
He is a Loser and I hope he goes to jail and rots!
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