SEC orders asset freeze on Denver-based Outdoor Capital Partners

The Securities and Exchange Commission issued a impermanent restraining bid and plus frost connected Thursday to halt what it alleges was a “fraudulent offering of securities and misappropriation of capitalist assets” by Denver-based Outdoor Capital Partners LLC and its manager Samuel J. Mancini.

The bid follows Mancini’s apprehension Tuesday successful a related transgression ailment that alleged securities fraud, ligament fraud, and wealth laundering. Mancini appeared earlier a Denver national tribunal and was released connected a $100,000 unsecured enslaved pending his archetypal quality successful a national tribunal successful New Jersey.

Starting successful precocious 2019, Outdoor Capital and Mancini, 55, raised astir $11.5 cardinal from astatine slightest 40 investors via the merchantability of memberships successful an concern fund, arsenic good arsenic the merchantability of high-interest indebtedness contracts, according to the SEC ailment unsealed Thursday.

Mancini told investors helium was raising a full of $20 cardinal and putting $5 cardinal of his ain wealth toward the acquisition of a controlling involvement successful 3 Italian cycling-related companies. But the SEC alleges the acquisitions didn’t instrumentality spot and Mancini misappropriated $400,000 of the funds and redirected astatine slightest $800,000 to different investors successful “Ponzi-like payments.”

Outdoor Capital Partners didn’t pass investors astir its nonaccomplishment to get the people companies, according to the complaint. When investors requested their wealth back, the SEC alleges that they were fixed fabricated documents, including fake fiscal statements, fake slope statements, and made-up emails from banks.

“As we allege, Mancini repeatedly lied to investors, sent investors falsified slope documents, and misappropriated capitalist funds,” said Kurt L. Gottschall, manager of the SEC’s Denver Regional Office, successful a quality release. “The SEC has important expertise successful rooting retired concern fraud by tracing the uses of capitalist funds adjacent where, arsenic we allege happened here, immoderate funds were transferred to overseas accounts.”

The SEC is seeking exigency alleviation arsenic good arsenic imperishable injunctions and the instrumentality of “ill-gotten gains” with involvement and civilian penalties, according to the complaint, which was filed successful the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. It besides has requested Mancini beryllium barred from serving arsenic an serviceman oregon manager and wants the instrumentality of wealth it alleges was paid to Italia Fund LLC, OCPITALUS LLC, and Mancini’s wife.

The transgression number of securities fraud, the astir terrible of the 3 the DOJ is seeking, carries a maximum punishment of 20 years successful situation and a $5 cardinal penalty.

Mancini garnered headlines successful 2014 and 2015 aft the shelves of the Bella Market stores helium owned went bare successful respective agrarian Colorado towns, forcing residents to thrust agelong distances to get basal items. He besides defaulted connected the indebtedness extended to him by the anterior proprietor of the concatenation of stores and near vendors unpaid.

Mancini didn’t supply a effect to the complaints anterior to publication.