William Veasey, founder of Texas based Petroforce Energy LLC, raised nearly $4 million in four allegedly fraudulent oil and gas offerings from approximately 80 investors. The Fort Worth SEC office investigated the dealings, and now both Veasey and Petroforce have agreed to settle an oil and gas fraud case.
According to the SEC’s complaint, Petroforce and Veasy provided investors with misleading and false statements regarding oil and gas investments, including paraffin issues at the drilling sites.
These statements allegedly misrepresented information impacting an earlier offering. Veasy purportedly overstated the wells’ profitability, and understated expenses, including eliminating the ability of investors to take an IDC tax deduction in the first-year when Petroforce required investors to change their status from “venturer to limited partner.”
Also caught in the sites of the SEC were Petroforce sales agents, Javier Avarado of Austin, Texas, and Ivan Turrentine of Naples, Florida. Both were charged with acting as unregistered brokers in the oil and gas offering fraud.
To determine if your broker is legally registered visit the SEC registered investment advisor site .
Petroforce and the three men settled with the SEC. Veasey will pay over $58,000 of disgorgement plus prejudgment interest and $90,000 in civil penalties. Petroforce will pay penalties of $150,000. Alvarado will pay $10,800 of disgorgement plus prejudgment interest.
Another of Veasey’s entities, Trustar Operating Company, was mentioned in the SEC complaint as the Texas drilling company. Click here to review more details in the SEC’s complaint.
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