Jampro has come out to deny that it was in any way involved in the any fraud which might have been committed by a principal in a local business process outsourcing company.
In response to a story carried in the Cayman publication Caribbean News Now and entitled ‘Jampro or Scampro’ which hinted that Mark A. Jones -who has been charged by the United States Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) for fraud – was politically connected and backed by Jampro, the agency’s President today outlined that it was a promotional entity only.
Jampro’s president Diane Edwards in an announcement on April 7 said, “ Following publication of an article in “Caribbean News Now” on April 5, 2016, there have been speculations about the integrity of the Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO) in facilitating investments to Jamaica, which I would like to clarify.
“Allegations that JAMPRO has any direct involvement in fraudulent investment “Ponzi” or “bridge loan” schemes are totally unfounded, detrimental to our good reputation, and must be retracted. JAMPRO handles investments in Jamaica against principles of pure business professionalism. We facilitate investors and investment projects that we believe can add value to our economy and create wealth for our people, for generations to come. Our systems and operations are transparent. We operate in good faith with all our investors and always expect positive returns.
On March 15, the SEC issued notice that it had charged a former Boston resident with operating a $10 million Ponzi scheme that claimed to generate profits from “bridge loans” to businesses in Jamaica.
The SEC complaint charges former Boston resident Mark A. Jones, who now lives in Miami and has a second home in Jamaica. Jones was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts filed related criminal charges against him.
According to the SEC complaint filed in federal court in Boston:
Jones began soliciting investors starting around 2007 and said their money would be pooled and used for “bridge loans” to Jamaican businesses awaiting funds from approved commercial bank loans. Jones told investors the bridge loans would generate approximately 15 per cent to 20 per cent interest a year.
Jones raised about $10 million from at least 21 investors in six states and Washington, D.C., including three of his own relatives.
Jones appeared in YouTube videos touting investment opportunities in Jamaica and met with some investors in Jamaica to show local projects they had purportedly funded.
Jones used investors’ money to pay other investors – the hallmark of a Ponzi scheme. He also used some investors’ money to pay his personal expenses.
The SEC said many of those that Jones defrauded are retirees who are now in financial straits because of their investments with him.
“We allege that Jones enticed investors with the idea that they were investing in loans to Jamaican businesses that already had been approved for bank loans. Instead, we charge that Jones used investor money for other purposes, including making payments in Ponzi scheme fashion,” Paul G. Levenson, Director of the SEC’s Boston Regional Office was quoted as stating.
The SEC obtained a court order freezing Jones’s assets and an order to repatriate investor funds that were moved overseas. The SEC’s complaint seeks a permanent injunction, return of allegedly ill-gotten gains with interest, and penalties.