Woman held in alleged fraud over penny stocks

A Bellevue stock promoter banned from the U.S. market eight years ago is among eight people arrested Wednesday on federal charges alleging they ran several "pump-and-dump" securities-fraud schemes.

Beverlee Kamerling, 63; her 22-year-old son, Nicholas Alexander; and six others from Florida and Utah are named in a grand-jury indictment alleging they ran a securities-fraud scheme that involved buying a public company, falsely inflating its worth and then dumping the stock through brokerages in the United States and Canada, and the Turk and Caicos Islands.

Kamerling has a long history of securities trouble in the United States and Canada, where she was banned from the markets 18 years ago. In 1999, U.S. District Judge Barbara Rothstein in Seattle banned her from the U.S. markets in a civil settlement that required Kamerling to pay back nearly $1.5 million in ill-gotten gains.

Federal prosecutors allege Kamerling and her alleged co-conspirators fleeced investors of more than $1.2 million by promoting several penny-stock schemes using publicly traded companies in Washington and Salt Lake City. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jim Lord said the promotions date to 2004 and have been under investigation by state and federal agents for more than a year.

Kamerling and her son were arrested Wednesday morning in Bellevue. A 21-count indictment accuses them of conspiracy, securities fraud, mail fraud, obstruction and lying to investigators and the grand jury.

Alexander, who served as an officer or executive in the companies, is accused of shredding documents in Boca Raton, Fla., and attempting to confound the FBI's investigation by using throwaway telephones after he learned of the investigation, Lord told U.S. Magistrate Judge Monica Benton at a hearing Wednesday.

Benton ordered the mother and son jailed pending a detention hearing.

Kamerling's alleged role in the scheme came out last week when Tolan Furusho, a Bellevue attorney and former registered agent for at least one of the companies, pleaded guilty to conspiracy and tax-evasion charges. Furusho is cooperating with the investigation and told the court that he helped Kamerling sell unregistered stock in American Asia Energy, which is headquartered in Salt Lake City.

The charges allege Kamerling got around the judge's ban by installing her son, mother and boyfriend as officers in several companies. The alleged frauds involved those Washington corporations — Detex Security Systems, Coattec Industries, America Asia and Global Gaming Network.

The indictment also alleges that Kamerling failed to pay taxes on nearly $850,000 in 2004 and 2005. Some of that money was derived from the securities scheme, Lord said.

Others indicted: Joel Ramsden, 32, of Delray Beach, Fla.; John Johansen, 37, of Plantation, Fla.; and John Worthen, 66, of Salt Lake City, are charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice and making false statements. Donald Goldstein, 65, of Highland Beach, Fla.; his son, 35-year-old Jamie Goldstein, of Boca Raton., Fla.; and Seth Quinto, 36, of Miami, are charged with conspiracy to commit perjury for lying to the grand jury.

Securities fraud and mail fraud carry maximum penalties of up to 20 years in federal prison and fines of up to $250,000.

Mike Carter: 206-464-3706 or mcarter@seattletimes.com