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by Mike Caswell

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has won a $727,029 order against Geoffrey Eiten, the Boston stock tout who held himself out as "America's Leading Micro-Cap Stock Picker." (All figures are in U.S. dollars.) The SEC said that Mr. Eiten misled investors in 2010 with a series of tout sheets that he issued under the name OTC Special Situations Report. Among other things, he falsely claimed that a Vancouver company had developed the fastest router in the world.

Mr. Eiten's sanction is contained in an order handed down on Sept. 30, 2014, in Boston by U.S. District Judge George O'Toole. It includes $605,262 in disgorgement, which is the full amount that the SEC had sought. Mr. Eiten must also pay $71,767 in interest and a $50,000 fine.

In handing down the penalties, the judge ignored Mr. Eiten's pleas for leniency. Mr. Eiten, who did not have the benefit of a lawyer, opposed the sanctions by claiming that the entire matter was an injustice brought on him by authorities. He said that the SEC case only arose after the Commonwealth of Massachusetts accused him of participating in an unrelated $5-million pump-and-dump in 2007, but could not find sufficient grounds to charge him. It then turned his file over to the SEC, which set out to "put [him] out of business."

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