[ by Melanie Gretchen ]

Talk about an oil salesman.

The SEC has resolved a sticky situation, caused by a South Florida man who has been charged with fraudulently offering investments in oil drilling projects.  Late last year, the same man had been caught in a previous SEC enforcement action against him.

• falsely told potential investors that Pacific acquired its wells from Exxon Mobil Corp.
• overstated Pacific’s experience in the oil and gas industry and the historical accomplishments of its drillers
• raised some $789,000 from investors

• sold $2.5 million worth of investments in oil drilling projects sponsored by United States Energy Corp.
• anticipated returns on the investments, the amount of oil being produced by U.S. Energy’s wells, and the existence of natural gas wells
• operated a boiler room of sales representatives paid on a commission basis

During the investigation, it was discovered that Hilton’s securities offerings were not registered with the SEC as required under the federal securities laws.

​"By changing his name, Hilton thought he could evade further SEC scrutiny and keep the investing public from finding the truth in his background.  The SEC is committed to pursuing repeat offenders and ensuring the open and transparent sale of securities to investors." -- Eric Bustillo, Director of the SEC’s Miami Regional Office.

For further details, including all the violations listed in the complaint, go to [SEC, 10/3/12] and the [SEC Complaint].