Par Funding – SEC Alleges Fraud | Goodman & Nekvasil P.A. May Recover Investor Losses
According to the SEC Complaint:
Spouses Lisa McElhone and Joseph W. LaForte orchestrated a scheme to raise investor funds through unregistered securities offerings for the cash advance company they control, Complete Business Solutions Group Inc., doing business as Par Funding. According to the complaint, McElhone and LaForte made opportunistic loans, some of which charged more than 400% interest, to small businesses across America. The complaint alleges that, to fuel the loans, McElhone and LaForte, with the assistance of other Par Funding personnel, allegedly used a network of unregistered sales agents and affiliated entities to sell promissory notes to the public while lying to or misleading investors about Par Funding’s business, how investor funds would be used, and LaForte’s role and criminal history.
SEC Alleges Fraud Against Par Funding
The fraudulent scheme operates behind multiple veils of secrecy built of the Defendants’ lies to conceal: (1) the true nature of Par Funding’s loan practices; (2) Par Funding’s true track record of issuing loans and the default rates of the loans; (3) the safety of investing in Par Funding’s loans; (4) LaForte’s criminal record, identity, and control of Par Funding; (5) three Cease-and-Desist Orders state securities regulators have entered against Par Funding for violating state securities laws; (6) the true result of the New Jersey Division of Securities’ investigation of Par Funding; (7) the fact that contrary to Par Funding’s representations to the Commission in its filings, it diverts investor funds to McElhone and Cole, Par Funding’s CFO, and also funnels money to L.M.E. 2017 Family Trust, which is McElhone’s family trust; (8) the fact that contrary to his representations to investors, LaForte has never invested in Par Funding; (9) a Cease-and Desist Order and sanctions issued against Vagnozzi for violating state securities laws in connection with the Par Funding offering; (10) a Cease-and-Desist Order and sanctions issued against ABFP for violating state securities laws in connection with the Par Funding offering; and (11) a Cease and-Desist Order and sanctions issued against Abbonizio for violating state securities laws in connection with the Par Funding offering.
Par Funding is a Delaware company Lisa McElhone and her husband, Joseph LaForte, started in 2011, which had its main office in Philadelphia until 2017 and currently has its sole office in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. From no later than August 27, 2013 through present, Complete Business Solutions Group has done business using the fictitious name Par Funding. Par Funding provides short-term loans to small businesses and claims to have funded more than $600 million in loans. Lisa McElhone is Par Funding’s President, CEO, and sole employee. McElhone has ultimate decision-making authority for Par Funding. The L.M.E. 2017 Family Trust, for which Lisa McElhone is the Grantor, is Par Funding’s sole owner.
Full List of Entities Named in SEC Complaint:
COMPLETE BUSINESS SOLUTIONS GROUP, INC. d/b/a/ PAR FUNDING, FULL SPECTRUM PROCESSING, INC., ABETTERFINANCIALPLAN.COM LLC d/b/a/ A BETTER FINANCIAL PLAN, ABFP MANAGEMENT COMPANY, LLC, f/k/a/ PILLAR LIFE SETTLEMENT MANAGEMENT COMPANY, LLC, ABFP INCOME FUND, LLC, ABFP INCOME FUND 2, L.P., UNITED FIDELIS GROUP CORP., FIDELIS FINANCIAL PLANNING LLC, RETIREMENT EVOLUTION GROUP, LLC, RETIREMENT EVOLUTION INCOME FUND, LLC, f/k/a RE INCOME FUND, LLC, RE INCOME FUND 2, LLC, LISA MCELHONE, JOSEPH COLE BARLETA, a/k/a/ JOE COLE, JOSEPH W. LAFORTE, a/k/a JOE MACK, a/k/a/ JOE MACKI, a/k/a JOE MCELHONE, PERRY S. ABBONIZIO, DEAN J. VAGNOZZI, MICHAEL C. FURMAN, and JOHN GISSAS.
Investors in Par Funding May Recover their Losses with Goodman & Nekvasil, P.A.
If you invested in Par Funding or another named entity, Goodman & Nekvasil, P.A. may help you. Goodman & Nekvasil, P.A., a St. Petersburg, Florida based law firm with a national practice representing victimized investors, has recovered more than $200 million dollars on behalf of victimized investors.
All our cases are handled on a purely contingency fee basis by Kalju Nekvasil, Esq., formerly regional counsel with the NASD, now known as FINRA. Kalju Nekvasil, Esq. has practiced in this area of the law for more than 37 years.
There is no charge for an evaluation of your case. Further, we handle our cases on a contingency fee basis. This means that unless we recover money for you, we charge no attorney’s fee. Unless you recover any money, you pay us nothing, not even the costs and expenses which the firm will advance on your behalf.
If you incurred investment losses in Par Funding or another named entity and would like your case evaluated by a securities attorney (again, there is no charge for an evaluation and all cases are handled on a purely contingency fee basis), please contact us.