Stock Trading System Peddlers With Connection To Florida "No Money Down" Real Estate Promotion Firm In Hot Water

In Soouthwest Florida, The News Press reports:

• The Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday filed civil fraud charges against two promoters who made millions selling the Whitney Information Network Inc. stock trading system on TV and at investor workshops in dozens of cities nationwide.The commission’s complaint alleges that Linda Woolf and David Gengler, both of Utah, duped seniors and others who had attended free introductory seminars into believing they would make extraordinary stock market profits if they bought expensive “Teach Me to Trade” (TMTT) classes, mentoring, and computer software.

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• TMTT is a unit of Whitney Information Network, a publicly traded company based in Cape Coral. Whitney conducts nationwide investor workshops that purport to teach investors the secrets to making money in real estate and the stock market. Russ Whitney, chairman, notified the board last week that he is taking a 45-day medical leave of absence, according to a filing Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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• In a filing Tuesday afternoon with the SEC, [Whitney Information Network] said that Woolf and Gengler “are no longer independent contractors for the company or any of its subsidiaries.” The filing goes on to say that “The company and its subsidiaries were not parties to the charges, and none of the company’s present or former directors or officers was charged. The company intends to continue to cooperate with the ongoing investigation by the commission.”

On a related note, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced the filing of a criminal indictment against Woolf and Gengler.

For more, see Whitney promoters charged by SEC (Civil complaint alleges they duped seniors).

For additional background on this story:

• For civil lawsuit, see Complaint - SEC v. Woolf, Gengler, et al.,
• For SEC press release, including links to the "Teach Me To Trade" videos, see SEC Charges TV Infomercial Personalities in Investor Workshop Fraud,
• For U.S. Attorney press release on the Woolf/Gengler criminal indictment, see Two Indicted In Multi-Million Dollar Stock Trading Seminar Scheme,
• BusinessWeek: Infomercial stars charged with fraud.