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Category Archives: fools ‘n frauds
Grass Isn’t Always Greener – SEC Fraud Charges Joecool
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced litigated charges against Joecool.com, LLC and its CEO, Joseph Ariel Haber, for alleged misappropriation and misuse of investor funds, as well as false and misleading statements to investors. There are also charges against recidivist securities law violator Robert Tye Cournoyer for his alleged false and misleading statements to investors and for acting as an unregistered broker.
The SEC’s complaint, filed in federal district court in Nevada, Case No. 25-cv-00076, alleges that between at least November 2019 and February 2024, Joecool raised approximately $2 million from investors through an unregistered securities offering by representing that investor funds would be used to produce, package, promote, and sell various CBD-infused coffee products. The SEC requested “a trial by jury on all claims so triable.” Continue reading
Posted in fools 'n frauds, litigation, news, news analysis, people
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Joecool.com fraud charges, Joseph Ariel Haber, Ken Zino, Robert Tye Cournoyer, Securities and Exchange Commission, Securities Exchange Act of 1934, securities law violations, X @KenAutoinformed
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Seventh Big Rigging Guilty Plea in Michigan Asphalt Industry
The former president of a Michigan asphalt paving company pleaded guilty last Wednesday for his role in a conspiracy to rig bids for asphalt paving services contracts in Michigan, the U.S. Justice Department said today. Documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, show that Timothy Baugher, former president of Pontiac-based Asphalt Specialists LLC (ASI), conspired with F. Allied Construction Company Inc. (Allied), and employees from those companies to rig bids in each other’s favor. Baugher participated in the conspiracy from July 2017 through May 2021.
Wednesday’s guilty plea is the 10th in the Antitrust Division’s ongoing investigation into collusion in the Michigan asphalt paving industry. Baugher’s former employer, ASI, and another former ASI executive also pleaded guilty for their participation in the conspiracy with Allied in January 2024. Allied and two of its executives previously pleaded guilty in August 2023 for their participation in the conspiracy. On Aug. 15, 2024, ASI was sentenced to pay a fine of $6,500,000.
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Posted in auto news, car sharing, fools 'n frauds, litigation, news analysis, people, transportation
Tagged Asphalt Specialists LLC, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Doha Mekki, F. Allied Construction Company, Ken Zino, Timothy Baugher, U.S. Justice Department Antitrust Division, X @KenAutoinformed
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Significant 2024 Automotive Stories and Trends
Once again at the beginning of 2025 AutoInformed notes – matter-of-factly – that its vision is 20-20 on the consequences of long past occurrences. However, in the here and now our perception is cloudy. We do not have the advantages of historians re-assessing events years later with help from other news outlets, blogs, letters, memoirs, magazines and whatever new forms of expressed thought emerge. Thus far the most valued revisions and nuanced interpretations appear in books and essays after more documents and perspectives surface from the players or perpetrators engaged in them. These are not yet available, and under Trump 2.0 they would likely be banned anyway. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, AutoInformed Editorial, car sharing, connected vehicles, economy, environment, fools 'n frauds, global warming, labor issues, manufacturing, marketing, news, news analysis, sales, transportation
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Biden Administration, George Santayana, industrial policy, Ken Zino, Trump 2.0, X @KenAutoinformed
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Ram ProMaster Diesel Engines – CARB Fines FCA $4.2M
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) said this week it has reached a settlement agreement with FCA US LLC (FCA) of Auburn Hills, Mich., for $4,185,820 for violations of CARB’s air quality regulations. The FCA vehicles concerned include model year (MY) 2014 through 2016 Ram ProMaster 1500, 2500 and 3500 vehicles equipped with 3-liter inline-4 diesel engines.*
“CARB’s robust compliance testing ensures that auto manufacturers sell the exact vehicles that received certification for sale within California, without alterations made to skirt the state’s regulations and release excess emissions that harm air quality and public health,” said CARB Executive Officer Dr. Steven Cliff. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, awards, car sharing, environment, fools 'n frauds, fuel economy or emissions, litigation, news analysis, public health, recalls
Tagged 2014 - 2016 Ram ProMaster 1500 and 2500 and 3500 trucks, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, California Air Resources Board, Death of the diesel, diesel emissions compliance, Dr. Steven Cliff, emissions defeat-device software, FCA US, Ken Zino, Marine Vessel Speed Reduction Incentive Program, oxides of nitrogen or NOx emissions, X @KenAutoinformed
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Clean Air Act – Power Performance Enterprises Fined
Louisiana-based company Power Performance Enterprises Inc. (PPEI) and its president and owner, Kory B. Willis, were sentenced yesterday in federal court in Sacramento, California, for violating and conspiring to violate the Clean Air Act by tampering with the monitoring devices … Continue reading
Posted in aftermarket, auto news, awards, car sharing, electronics, environment, fools 'n frauds, fuel economy or emissions, litigation, news analysis, public health
Tagged Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Clean Air Act tampering, DOJ Environment and Natural Resources Division, Ken Zino, Kory B. Willis, Power Performance Enterprises, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert, U.S. District Court Judge John A. Mendez, X @KenAutoinformed
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Florida Man Pleads Guilty to Odometer Tampering
Drew Mitchell Schreiber, of Orlando, Florida, pleaded guilty yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida to three counts of odometer tampering, The U.S. Justice Department said today. In all, Schreiber sold 140 rolled-back vehicles. Because many of these vehicles were more than 10 years old, Schreiber obtained so-called “exempt” titles that did not reveal the actual mileage of the vehicles.
“Just because a motor vehicle may be exempt from mileage recording on a title does not give a dealer the right to roll back odometers,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division. “With vehicles remaining in use for longer periods of time, many Americans rely on older vehicles as their primary mode of transportation. Used car buyers deserve peace of mind knowing that the odometer reading in their vehicle is correct.” Continue reading
Posted in aftermarket, auto news, car sharing, fools 'n frauds, litigation, people
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Drew Mitchell Schreiber, Ken Zino, NHTSA Office of Odometer Fraud Investigation, odometer tampering, Southeastern Credit Union Solutions, U.S. Justice Department Consumer Protection Branch, X @KenAutoinformed
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Trump Presidency Effects on Auto Industry – All Bad?
After the election of Donald Trump, Jeff Schuster, Vice President Research Automotive at the GlobalData* consultancy, offered thoughts some of the changes expected in the US automotive industry from Trump 2.0. Fasten your safety belts! AutoInformed thinks it’s going to be a bumpy job, climate and economy threatening ride.
“Automotive is one of the sectors that could see a significant mid-term impact from the new Trump presidency in the areas of Trade, Electric Vehicle Transition and Regulations, “said Schuster this morning. Continue reading
Posted in auto news, economy, environment, fools 'n frauds, labor issues, manufacturing, news analysis, people, results, shows and events, transportation
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, GlobalData consultancy, Jeff Schuster, Ken Zino, second Trump Presidency, X @KenAutoinformed
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U.S. International Trade Deficit Up in September
The U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis announced today that the goods and services deficit was $84.4 billion in September, up $13.6 billion from $70.8 billion in August, revised. As the economy continues to expand, consumers are buying more raising the deficit. The news comes on Election Day where under new Trump Administration – if it returns – proposed tariffs by Trump will cost consumers billions upon billions of dollars, send the cost of living soaring and hurt the economy overall. Trumpa-nomics 2 the sequel: Tanking the Economy Again. Continue reading
Posted in customer satisfaction, economy, financial results, fools 'n frauds, labor issues, manufacturing, news, news analysis
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, balance of trade, Chinese trade war, Ken Zino, Trump economics nonsense, Trump taxes on the working class, US Trade deficit, X @KenAutoinformed
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IPR Center Warns Consumers of Chinese Counterfeit Airbags
CBP officers at U.S. ports of entry are looking at imports – particularly those from China – for shipments suspected of containing counterfeit automotive parts. During fiscal year 2023, CBP and HSI seized ~20,000 shipments containing goods that violated Intellectual Property Rights, equating to nearly 23 million counterfeit items. The total estimated manufacturer’s suggested retail price of the seized goods would have amounted to over $2.75 billion had they been genuine parts. Out of those shipments, ~100,000 items were counterfeit automotive goods, with a MSRP of over $10 million. Continue reading
Posted in aftermarket, auto news, customer satisfaction, fools 'n frauds, manufacturing, quality, shows and events
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, Automotive Anti-Counterfeiting Council, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Brandon Lord, Chinese counterfeits of auto parts, Counterfeit Airbags, Homeland Security Investigations, Intellectual Property Rights, IPR Center, Ivan Arvelo, Ken Zino, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Robert Stewart, Sophie Shulman, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, X @KenAutoinformed
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North Carolina Parts Seller Fined for Emission Defeat Devices
North Carolina automotive parts manufacturer and seller, Rudy’s Performance Parts Inc. (Rudy’s), and its owner, Aaron Rudolf, have agreed to pay a total of $10 million in criminal fines and civil penalties for manufacturing, selling and installing devices, commonly known as “defeat devices,” used to remove or disable required emissions controls in motor vehicles, the U.S. Department of justice said today.
“Defeat devices, such as those sold by Rudy’s, can lead to pollution at high levels that pose health risks and harm the environment,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “This plea agreement and civil settlement show that we will take strong action to enforce the Clean Air Act and emissions controls requirements for motor vehicles.” Continue reading
Posted in auto news, electronics, fools 'n frauds, fuel economy or emissions, litigation, manufacturing, news analysis, people
Tagged Aaron Rudolf, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Ken Zino, OBD defeat devices, Rudy’s Performance Parts, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. District Court Judge Trevor N. McFadden, X @KenAutoinformed
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UAW Files Labor Charges Against Donald Trump And Elon Musk for Attempting to Intimidate and Threaten Workers
“When we say Donald Trump is a scab, this is what we mean. When we say Trump stands against everything our union stands for, this is what we mean,” said UAW President Shawn Fain. “Donald Trump will always side against workers standing up for themselves, and he will always side with billionaires like Elon Musk, who is contributing $45 million a month to a Super PAC to get him elected. Both Trump and Musk want working class people to sit down and shut up, and they laugh about it openly. It’s disgusting, illegal, and totally predictable from these two clowns.” Continue reading
Posted in auto news, fools 'n frauds, litigation, milestones, news analysis, people, shows and events
Tagged auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, donald trump, elon musk, Ken Zino, National Labor Relations Act, Shawn fain, uaw, X @KenAutoinformed
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NHTSA Issues Consumer Alert on Faulty Replacement Airbags
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that used car buyers and owners need to be aware of cheap, substandard replacement air bag inflators that can cause death or serious injury in a crash. In the last year, three people have been killed and two people have suffered life-altering, disfiguring injuries due to these faulty aftermarket replacement air bag inflators. Continue reading
Posted in aftermarket, auto news, fools 'n frauds, news analysis, quality, safety
Tagged airbag fatalities or serious injuries, auto industry commentary, autoinformed.com, automotive blog, Automotive news and analysis, Homeland Security Investigations office, Ken Zino, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Intellectual Property Rights Coordination Center, NHTSA Consumer Alert on Replacement airbags
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Toyota’s Hino Motors Emissions Fraud – $1.6B Plea Deal
The U.S. Justice Department, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), FBI, Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General (DOT-OIG), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and State of California reached criminal and multiple civil resolutions, valued at more than $1.6 billion, with Hino Motors Ltd., Hino Motors Manufacturing U.S.A., Inc. and Hino Motors Sales U.S.A., Inc. (collectively, Hino) for violations related to the submission of false and fraudulent engine emission testing and fuel consumption data to regulators and the illicit smuggling of engines into the United States. These resolutions are subject to approval by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
“Hino knew the requirements that engines must meet to be certified to operate in the United States, yet it falsified data for years to skirt regulations,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) yesterday. “Hino’s actions led to vast amounts of excess air pollution and were an egregious violation of our nation’s environmental, consumer protection and import laws.” Continue reading →