Jared Mitchell, Securities Fraud, New York

Jared Mitchell, 34, of New York, New York, and Maroof Miyana, 36, of Boca Raton, Florida, pleaded guilty today to securities fraud for their roles in a $131 million market manipulation scheme centered on ForceField Energy Inc. (FNRG), a shell company posing as a global LED lighting distributor. The guilty pleas, entered before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ramon E. Reyes, Jr. in Brooklyn, signal the latest collapse in a sprawling fraud that duped investors for over six years.

The scheme, which ran from January 2009 to April 2015, relied on smoke-and-mirrors trading tactics designed to inflate the price and trading volume of FNRG stock. Mitchell, an investor relations operative, and Miyana, a registered broker, used nominee accounts to buy and sell shares covertly, orchestrated fake trading surges, and concealed payments to stock promoters who pushed the stock as independent when they were, in fact, on the take. None of this was disclosed to the public or to investors.

Between October 2014 and April 2015, the fraud escalated. A ForceField executive funneled commission kickbacks to Mitchell, who in turn distributed portions to brokers like Miyana—always off the books and without client consent. These brokers purchased FNRG shares in their clients’ accounts, driven by illicit profit, not sound investment strategy. Total losses to investors: $131 million.

To evade detection, the conspirators turned to the tools of the underworld—prepaid burner phones and encrypted messaging apps that erased content after delivery. Payments were made in cash, leaving no paper trail. Their efforts to hide in plain sight failed. The FBI, working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, peeled back the layers of deception, leading to today’s admissions.

Each defendant now faces up to 20 years in federal prison, plus restitution, criminal forfeiture, and steep financial penalties. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Mark E. Bini and Lauren H. Elbert of the Business and Securities Fraud Section. U.S. Attorney Robert L. Capers and FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney, Jr. confirmed the charges, underscoring the federal crackdown on financial fraud.

The case falls under the umbrella of the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force—a nationwide coalition of over 20 federal agencies and 94 U.S. Attorneys’ offices. Since 2009, the task force has prosecuted more than 18,000 financial fraud cases. With docket number E.D.N.Y. 16-CR-234 (BMC), the Mitchell-Miyana case adds another scar to Wall Street’s shadow economy, where greed masquerades as growth—and ordinary investors pay the price.