The Daily Fuckup

Federal regulators and prosecutors moved on February 23, 2021 against what they described as a microcap stock-fraud scheme tied to Medifirst Solutions, Inc. The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint in federal court in New York accusing the company, its president Bruce Schoengood, and stock promoter Joshua Tyrell of using a sham consulting arrangement to get 20 million shares into Tyrell’s hands without proper registration. The SEC said the shares were actually meant to pay Tyrell for promoting the stock, not for legitimate consulting work. It also charged Schoengood with manipulative trading designed to keep Medifirst’s share price from falling. ([sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/enforcement-litigation/litigation-releases/lr-25034?utm_source=openai))

According to the SEC, the alleged scheme started in December 2016 and ran for months. The complaint says Schoengood caused Medifirst to issue the shares under the consulting label, while he and Tyrell misled Tyrell’s brokerage firm about the purpose of the stock. The SEC also said Tyrell sold more than 19 million shares in the public market for about $125,000 and that Schoengood arranged purchases intended to support the price of Medifirst stock. In the commission’s view, the case involved both a registration violation and antifraud conduct. ([sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/enforcement-litigation/litigation-releases/lr-25034?utm_source=openai))

The Justice Department’s Eastern District of New York office announced criminal charges against Schoengood the same day. Its complaint said Schoengood used sham consulting agreements, concealed the role of paid promoters, and issued stock to co-conspirators who then sold into artificially created trading volume and kicked back part of the proceeds. Prosecutors said Schoengood was arrested and appeared in court on February 23, 2021. ([justice.gov](https://www.justice.gov/usao-edny/pr/ceo-medifirst-inc-solutions-arrested-securities-fraud?utm_source=openai))

The SEC later published Litigation Release No. 25034 on February 24, 2021, but the underlying commission complaint was filed on February 23, 2021. The case does not involve Donald Trump personally. It does, however, show how a stock can be pushed through the market with a mix of hidden compensation, false paperwork, and trading meant to create the appearance of demand. ([sec.gov](https://www.sec.gov/enforcement-litigation/litigation-releases/lr-25034?utm_source=openai))