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by Mike Caswell

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has permanently banned Florida stock promoter Gerard D'Amaro from penny stocks for his role in the pump-and-dump of Playstar Corp., an Ontario pink sheets listing. The SEC claimed that he and a Polish citizen, Pawel Dynkowski, inflated the stock from under a penny to 12 cents with wash trades and misleading news, and then dumped $1.18-million worth of stock. (All figures are in U.S. dollars.)

Mr. D'Amaro, who is already serving a three-year sentence in a Miami jail for the scheme, agreed to the ban and to a $217,903 disgorgement order to settle the case. While he did not admit to any wrongdoing in settling, he pleaded guilty to parallel criminal charges in March, 2010.

The charges stemmed from a two-year investigation into a ring of promoters that used the Investors Hub website. The SEC claimed that the men manipulated four pink sheets listings, including Playstar, and dumped $6.2-million worth of stock. Those jailed included former Investors Hub operator Matthew Brown, who is serving four years after pleading guilty to criminal securities fraud charges in February, 2010.

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