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by Mike Caswell

John Babikian, the Montreal man facing civil fraud charges from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a $1.9-million scalping scheme, has filed an answer to the case. (All figures are in U.S. dollars.) Unfortunately the answer provides few details of Mr. Babikian's version of events. In response to most of the allegations he invokes his Fifth Amendment right "not to be a witness against himself."

Without a detailed response to the charges, the only information available comes from the SEC. The regulator claims that Mr. Babikian, 26, was the operator of AwesomePennyStocks.com, a website that touted a number of OTC Bulletin Board and pink sheets listings. According to the SEC, Mr. Babikian used the site to fraudulently promote a purported Utah coal miner called America West Resources Ltd. He recommended the stock as a pick on Feb. 23, 2013, sending it to $1.80, up from 29 cents, the SEC claimed. He then secretly sold 1.3 million shares, generating $1.9-million in profits, according to the SEC.

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