Complaint Review: Kevin Horne

 WHen you think of scam type in kevin horne houston and you will see all his glory... He likes to buy people drinks with fraudulent funds that he gets from doing oil and gas scams!! Beware Kevin Horne Houston Oil and Gas Scam ALerty. He picks at the top of his head because he is always lying about everything so this is his nervous twitch for you to run..

Oil & Gas Investment Fraud

Oct 13, 2008 No Comments by Leah Szarek -->

State securities regulators around the country warn that oil and gas investment scams are alive and well. High oil prices have created a heightened interest in investments in energy-related business ventures.

Most oil and gas investment opportunities, while involving varying degrees of risks to the investor, are legitimate in their marketing and responsible in their operations. However, as in many other investment opportunities, it is not unusual for unscrupulous promoters to attempt to take advantage of investors by engaging in fraudulent practices.

Although some of the con artists moved on to more lucrative venues since the oil boom ended in the mid-1980s, many continued to linger on in the oil field. Now with the constant fluctuation of oil prices, some of these people have made their way back to these kinds of scams. When there is a highly publicized economic circumstance, which creates an opportunity for money to be made legitimately, scamsters follow in the shadows to take advantage of the situation.

WHAT ARE OIL AND GAS INVESTMENTS?

Oil and gas investments take many forms, including limited partnership interests, ownership of fractional undivided interests in leases, and general partnerships. Tax consequences and investor liability vary according to the type of program. True general partnerships in which investors actively participate in the operations of the venture are not securities. A general partner, however, is personally liable for partnership debts.

In a drilling limited partnership, an oil or gas company sells partnership units to investors and uses the money it raises to lease property and drill wells. In return for managing the project, the sponsor company usually takes an upfront fee that averages about 15-16% of one’s investment (commonly referred to as tangible and intangible drilling costs) and also shares in a percentage of any revenue generated. In return, the promoter offers the investor the prospect of a substantial first year tax write-off and quarterly cash distributions from the sale of any oil and gas the partnership finds until the wells run dry.

Drilling partnerships have always been a gamble, but recently, they have proven somewhat riskier than usual. This type of investment is very speculative, is a highly illiquid investment and can have a long holding period.

FRAUDULENT SALES TECHNIQUES

Fraudulent oil and gas deals are frequently structured with the limited partnership (or other legal entity) in one state, the operation and physical presence of the field in a second state, and the offerings made to prospective investors in states other than the initial two states. Thus there is less chance of an investor dropping by a well site or a nonexistent company headquarters. Such a structure also makes it difficult for law enforcement officials and victims to identify and expose the fraud.

BOILER ROOMS & INTERNET PITCHES

In order to attract the interest of potential investors, unprincipled promoters frequently use the Internet and “boiler room” offices with banks of phones manned by salespeople with little or no background in energy exploration, but plenty of experience in high-pressure sales. Their techniques include repeated unsolicited phone calls to members of the public, hyping the profitability of the deal. Some swindlers use professionally designed brochures. Beware of unsolicited oil and gas promotions on the internet and through e-mail. State securities regulators caution potential investors to beware of the following claims in a typical high-pressure sales pitch, whether through unsolicited telephone calls or e-mail messages:

You will have an interest in a well that cannot miss;The risks are minimal;A geologist has given the salesperson a tip;The salesperson has personally invested in the venture;The promoter has “hit” on every well drilled so far;There has been a tremendous “discovery” in an adjacent field;A large, reputable oil company is operating or planning to operate in the area;Only a few interests remain to be sold and you should immediately send in your money in order to assure the purchase of an interest;This is a special private deal open only to a lucky chosen few investors.