SEC v. StratoComm Corporation, et al. (unregistered distributions, 2016)

On appeal

✓ Checked against the primary document on October 2, 2026. The library's summary, tags and figures for this record were compared with the regulator's own document by an AI model (Claude) following written instructions, with sampled and disputed records read a second time. No lawyer has reviewed them. A checked record can still contain errors, and checked does not mean endorsed. See how we check records or report a correction.

Report an error in this record (sec-stratocomm-corporation-et-al-unregistered-distributions-2016) by email

In 2016 the SEC announced that the Second Circuit upheld judgment against StratoComm Corporation and CEO Roger D. Shearer for fraud and Section 5 violations, with penalties of $100,000 and $50,000.

The record

What was ordered

Civil penalty

$150k

Disgorgement

—

Prejudgment interest

—

Total relief

$150k

Alleged gain

—

A dash means the release did not state a figure we could extract, not that the figure is zero. Penalty and disgorgement are stored separately so aggregates across the library do not double-count the same dollars.

What is alleged to have happened

On June 17, 2016 the SEC announced the appeal outcome in a Northern District of New York case against StratoComm Corporation and its CEO Roger D. Shearer. The complaint charged StratoComm with Securities Act Sections 5(a), 5(c) and 17(a) and Exchange Act Section 10(b) violations, and Shearer with Section 5 violations, aiding fraud and control-person liability; summary judgment on liability followed in 2014 and an amended judgment in March 2015. The judgment ordered the two together to pay $4,968,709.68 in disgorgement and interest combined and civil penalties of $100,000 and $50,000, plus bars for Shearer. Only the penalties, $150,000 in all, are recorded, because the disgorgement figure is combined with interest.

This library tags the matter as unregistered distributions, based on the conduct the document describes. The tagging is ours, not the regulator's: agencies charge statutory provisions, not technique names.

For the regulator's own account of the facts, read the primary document linked above. This page deliberately summarises the structured record rather than reproducing the release.

What technique is this, and how does it work?

This action is tagged with one technique in our taxonomy. The tagging is ours: regulators charge statutory provisions, not technique names, so the mapping is an editorial judgement described in our editorial policy.

• Unregistered distributions — see how it works, what statute it engages, and every other action tagged the same way.

Timeline

1. 2016-06-17 Litigation release published

Primary documents

Everything on this page derives from the documents below. Where our summary and the primary document disagree, the primary document is right.

• SEC litigation release

The linked release is a work of the United States government and is not subject to copyright. Our summary and narrative above are our own writing.

Related actions

Other actions in the library sharing at least one technique tag with this one.

Record added September 10, 2026. submit a correction.