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.”
According to the complaint, Haber instead misappropriated and misused the majority of the received investor funds, including by spending the funds on various purchases at casinos, pawn shops, restaurants, and cigar lounges, and by paying Cournoyer for finding Joecool investors, persuading them to invest, and negotiating the terms of the investments. The complaint also charges the defendants with making false and misleading statements to investors with respect to Joecool’s purported negotiations and agreements with wholesaler customers, and further charges Cournoyer with acting as an unregistered broker.
The complaint alleges that (i) all of the defendants violated Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5(b) thereunder; (ii) Haber and Joecool also violated Sections 17(a)(1) and (3) of the Securities Act and Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act and Rules 10b-5(a) and (c) thereunder; and (iii) Cournoyer also violated Section 15(a) of the Exchange Act. The SEC seeks injunctions, disgorgement with prejudgment interest, and civil penalties against all defendants, as well as officer and director bars and conduct-based injunctions against Haber and Cournoyer.
Defendants
- Joecool.com, LLC is a Nevada limited liability company that was founded in September 2019. Between November 2019 and February 2024 Joecool purported to offer various CBD-infused coffee products, including K-cups, coffee beans, and energy shots.
- Joseph Ariel Haber, age 54, is a resident of Henderson, Nevada and is the CEO and controlling managing member of Joecool. Haber controlled Joecool’s bank accounts during the Relevant Period.
- Robert Tye Cournoyer, age 57, has previously resided in Texas, but his current state of residence is unknown. During the Relevant Period, Cournoyer was Joecool’s Vice President of Investor Relations. He raised approximately $2 million for Joecool by soliciting investors, including many investors who had previously invested in other entities controlled by Cournoyer, Green Equity Group, LLC (“GEG”) and RS Group, LLC (“RS Group”).
- The SEC has sued Cournoyer twice before, most recently in the pending matter, SEC v. Cournoyer, et al., Case No. 24-cv-01304 (D. Colo., filed May 10, 2024). In 2004, Cournoyer was enjoined from violating certain provisions of the federal securities laws and from participating in any offering of penny stock, SEC v. Get Answers, Inc., et al., No. 03-cv-20048 (S.D. Fla., filed Jan. 2003), and the SEC barred Cournoyer from association with any broker or dealer, In re Cournoyer, Exchange Act Release No. 34- 49720 (May 18, 2004).
The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Zachary D. Williams and Yamini Piplani Grema with the assistance of Jodanna Haskins, Kerry Matticks, and Helena Engelhart Bean, and was supervised by Danielle R. Voorhees, Nicholas P. Heinke, and Jason J. Burt, all of the SEC’s Denver Regional Office. The SEC’s litigation will be conducted by Mr. Williams and Ms. Haskins and supervised by Gregory A. Kasper, Mr. Heinke, and Mr. Burt.
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.”
According to the complaint, Haber instead misappropriated and misused the majority of the received investor funds, including by spending the funds on various purchases at casinos, pawn shops, restaurants, and cigar lounges, and by paying Cournoyer for finding Joecool investors, persuading them to invest, and negotiating the terms of the investments. The complaint also charges the defendants with making false and misleading statements to investors with respect to Joecool’s purported negotiations and agreements with wholesaler customers, and further charges Cournoyer with acting as an unregistered broker.
The complaint alleges that (i) all of the defendants violated Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5(b) thereunder; (ii) Haber and Joecool also violated Sections 17(a)(1) and (3) of the Securities Act and Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act and Rules 10b-5(a) and (c) thereunder; and (iii) Cournoyer also violated Section 15(a) of the Exchange Act. The SEC seeks injunctions, disgorgement with prejudgment interest, and civil penalties against all defendants, as well as officer and director bars and conduct-based injunctions against Haber and Cournoyer.
Defendants
The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Zachary D. Williams and Yamini Piplani Grema with the assistance of Jodanna Haskins, Kerry Matticks, and Helena Engelhart Bean, and was supervised by Danielle R. Voorhees, Nicholas P. Heinke, and Jason J. Burt, all of the SEC’s Denver Regional Office. The SEC’s litigation will be conducted by Mr. Williams and Ms. Haskins and supervised by Gregory A. Kasper, Mr. Heinke, and Mr. Burt.