SEC v. Wellness Center USA, Inc. (fake press releases, 2018)

Settled

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.

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In 2018, the Securities and Exchange Commission settled an action with Wellness Center USA, Inc., alleging conduct this library classifies as fake press releases. The release does not state a monetary figure that we were able to extract.

The record

Structured fields for this action, as recorded in our case library.
Agency	SEC
Release number	3-18435
Date filed	2018-04-12
Date resolved	2018-04-12
Status	settled
Asset class	equities
Venue	OTC
Criminal parallel	No
Defendants	Wellness Center USA, Inc. (entity)
Cited as charged or alleged	Exchange Act s.10(b) and Rule 10b-5 ; Exchange Act s.15(a) ; Securities Act s.17(a) (statutes and rules cited in the document; not a finding that they were violated)
Techniques	Fake press releases

What was ordered

Civil penalty: —
Disgorgement: —
Prejudgment interest: —
Total relief: —
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

the Securities and Exchange Commission announced this matter on April 12, 2018 as release 3-18435. The respondents named are Wellness Center USA, Inc. (0 individuals, 1 entity).

This library tags the matter as fake press releases, based on the conduct the regulator describes. Each tag links to a page explaining how that technique works, what statute it engages, and what penalties comparable actions have attracted. The tagging is ours, not the regulator's: agencies charge statutory provisions, not technique names.

The conduct is recorded against equities, with OTC identified in the release.

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.

Fake press releases — see how it works, what statute it engages, and every other action tagged the same way.

Timeline

2018-04-12 Administrative proceeding instituted (cease-and-desist)

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 order

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.

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

Action	Agency	Filed	Technique	Penalty	Status
SEBI v. Kalahridhaan Trendz Limited and others (false corporate announcements, 2026)	SEBI (India)	2026-07-30	Misleading Issuer Disclosure , Fake Press Releases	—	judgment
SEC v. Muhammad Saad Shoukat and others (fake press releases, 2026)	SEC	2026-01-06	Fake Press Releases , Insider Trading	—	filed
SEC v. Jeremy Koski (fake press releases, 2023)	SEC	2023-09-01	Fake Press Releases	$100k	settled
SEC v. In Ovations Holdings, Inc. and Mark Goldberg (fake press releases, 2022)	SEC	2022-12-09	Fake Press Releases	—	judgment
SEC v. Michael J. Starkweather and Andiamo Corporation (fake press releases, 2021)	SEC	2021-12-03	Fake Press Releases	—	judgment
SEC v. Mark A. Miller (fake press releases, 2021)	SEC	2021-06-21	Fake Press Releases , Pump And Dump	—	judgment

Record added September 10, 2026. submit a correction.