Between October 2018 and October 2021, the Heartland Group Ventures and Heartland Production and Recovery raised over $122 million dollars from over 700 investors for drilling new oil wells in Texas and other North America locations. The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), according to their recently filed complaint has accused Heartland and its related funds of securities fraud. Heartland raised money for their drilling funds through a network of financial advisors across the country. The SEC action lists the following defendants along with some relief defendants including but not limited to:
The SEC alleges that several defendants engaged in selling unregistered securities offerings. One example of the fraud highlighted by the SEC complaint is alleged that the Heartland defendants spent about approximately half the investor funds on oil and gas projects which generated less than $500k and in 2019 starting using new investor money to pay back old investors. The SEC alleges that these were “ponzi payments”. There has been no answer filed to the complaint and all allegations have yet to be proven. Further allegations raised by the SEC are Defendants falsifying the barrels of oil a day that a well is producing along with other material misrepresentations.
The defendants relied on a network of brokers, brokerage firms, and financial advisors to lure in investors into the investments. Financial professionals are fiduciaries and have to recommend suitable investments after conducting adequate due diligence on the investment. It can be argued given the red flags identified by the SEC that many financial professionals failed to meet their minimum obligations in conducting due diligence and may be held fully responsible for the losses the investors sustained. For more about the SEC complaint CLICK HERE.
Investors in these funds or related entities should consider filing lawsuits against the financial advisors and other financial professionals that recommended these investments. Soreide Law Group files claims on behalf of individual investors nationwide through the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. The claims are filed on a contingency fee basis so there is no fee unless we are successful in recovering your lost investment proceeds. Call 1-888-760-6552 today for a free consultation.
If your broker or financial advisor recommended risky stocks or other investments please call us today at 1-888-760-6552.
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