![]() ![]() Ultimately, GILBERTSON made millions as a result of his stock manipulation scheme. Among other things, HOSKINS claimed that he did not discuss the stock trades with any other individuals. ![]() HOSKINS repeatedly lied under oath during the deposition, covering up both his and GILBERTSON’S involvement in the stock manipulation scheme. In the wake of the fraud scheme, HOSKINS was interviewed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) about his involvement in these stock sales. This inflated share price triggered a $32.8 million bonus payment to GILBERTSON and the other noteholders. Throughout that 20-day period, GILBERTSON, with the help of HOSKINS and others, manipulated the price of Dakota Plains stock to increase the average trading price to $11.30 per share. On the first day of public trading, HOSKINS began selling his newly acquired shares for an inflated price of $12 per share at GILBERTSON’S direction, and continued to do so throughout the first 20 days of public trading following the reverse merger. GILBERTSON then gave $30,000 to HOSKINS, who was deeply in debt and owed money to the IRS and other creditors, in order to purchase 50,000 shares of Dakota Plains stock at a price of $0.50 per share on March 23, 2012, the morning of the reverse merger. GILBERTSON made it a secret condition of the reverse merger that HOSKINS, his friend and polo coach, be able to purchase the majority of the “float” of freely trading shares, which were the only shares that could trade publicly following the reverse merger. As proven in court, as part of the fraud scheme, GILBERTSON caused Dakota Plains to go public via a reverse merger with a company called Malibu Club Tan, which was a publicly traded shell company. GILBERTSON who was the founder of Dakota Plains Holdings, Inc., (“Dakota Plains”) was sentenced on December 11, 2018, to 144 months of federal prison.ĭakota Plains was a privately held company based in Wayzata, Minnesota that owned and operated a transloading facility in New Town, North Dakota. A federal jury convicted HOSKINS and RYAN RANDALL GILBERTSON, 42, of multiple counts of wire fraud, securities fraud, and conspiracy to commit securities fraud, on June 26, 2018, following an 11-day jury trial before Judge Schiltz. District Court in Minneapolis, Minnesota. HOSKINS was sentenced earlier today by Judge Patrick J. MacDonald today announced the sentencing of DOUGLAS VAUGHN HOSKINS, 50, to 24 months of federal prison. ![]()
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