New Jersey
Fair Lawn man, NY associate facing civil action by NJ AG for defrauding investor
![Fair Lawn man, NY associate facing civil action by NJ AG for defrauding investor Fair Lawn man, NY associate facing civil action by NJ AG for defrauding investor](https://www.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/authoring-images/2024/11/22/PNJM/76505295007-oag-logo-color.png?auto=webp&crop=594,334,x0,y130&format=pjpg&width=1200)
3-minute read
A Bergen County man and his New York business associate are facing a civil enforcement action filed by the New Jersey Bureau of Securities with the Division of Consumer Affairs for defrauding at least one New Jersey investor in an investment scheme tied to a job recruiting software service that they were allegedly trying to grow, according to the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General.
Michael Lakshin. of Fair Lawn, and Edward Aizman. of Brooklyn, as well as their company Bowmo, Inc. used “fraud and deception,” allegedly convincing one of Lakshin’s childhood friends to liquidate her retirement fund and invest in their start-up business venture, according to a civil complaint filed in Bergen County on Friday. They then allegedly diverted most of the funds for their own personal use including cash advances, hotel stays and purchases at car dealerships and designer stores among other expenditures.
“The defendants in this case shamelessly bankrolled their lavish lifestyles with someone else’s hard-earned retirement savings,” said Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin. “The lawsuit announced today sends a clear message that this kind of blatant exploitation of investors will not go unpunished in New Jersey.”
The complaint alleges, according to the Office of the Attorney General, that from April through August 2020, Lakshin, Aizman and Bowmo (through Lakshin and Aizman), offered and sold at least $84,681.19 of Bowmo’s securities in the form of a convertible note to at least one NJ investor.
They told the investor that the Bowmo note was an investment opportunity which would provide her a “significantly higher return” than her retirement savings. They allegedly told her that Bowmo was successful, bringing in a lot of money through its success and that she could profit by investing her funds into the company.
Lakshin also allegedly leveraged their childhood connection to convince her to invest. After learning about the investor’s retirement account, Lakshin allegedly pressured her to liquidate the account for the purpose of buying the Bowmo note.
Lakshin assured the investor that she would “realistically” be able to earn “A MUCH GREATER return,” through a series of text messages, falsely informed the investor that she should not have any taxes or penalties withheld when withdrawing funds from her account, and assured her that Bowmo would reimburse her for any taxes or penalties that would have to be paid as a result of the liquidation.
On June 25, 2020, the investor liquidated her retirement account. This liquidation included two charges and exposed her to paying taxes on the funds as she was not “rolling them over to another qualified retirement plan,” according to the Office of the Attorney General .
On July 2, 2020, the investor met with Lakshin and Aizman and signed a Bowmo subscription agreement. She wired $84,681.19 from her bank account to a Bowmo bank account controlled by Lakshin and Aizman later that month.
A Bowmo investor package provided to the investor prior to investing said that funds would be used to further develop Bowmo’s software, expand its marketing business, and make strategic hires among other business-related ventures.
Instead, the defendants allegedly transferred the funds to bank accounts held by a seperate and unrelated entity and misused the funds by diverting them for personal and non-business-related purposes.
The lawsuit seeks a court order to permanently ban Bowmo, its president and chairman Lakshin, and its founder and CEO Aizman, from issuing, offering, or selling securities in New Jersey, according to the Office of the Attorney General. It also asks the court to assess civil monetary penalties, restitution plus interest and expenses for the victim, and disgorgement of all funds and profits gained from the scheme.
According to Bureau Chief Elizabeth M. Harris, this case “serves as a sobering example of why it’s vitally important to investigate investment products, even those offered by someone you know and trust.”
She continued, “It’s also an opportunity to remind our residents that while fraudulent investment schemes come in a variety of forms, the pressure to act fast to avoid missing out on a hot investment is a universal red flag of fraud that should not be ignored. In addition to doing their due diligence before investing, we urge New Jerseyans to follow their instincts when a transaction doesn’t pass the smell test.”
Investors can obtain information about any financial professional doing business to or from New Jersey by visiting the Bureau’s website at www.NJSecurities.gov, or calling the Bureau within New Jersey at 1-866-446-8378 or from outside New Jersey at 973-504-3600.
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New Jersey
On June 1, electricity bills for most New Jersey residents will go up
![On June 1, electricity bills for most New Jersey residents will go up On June 1, electricity bills for most New Jersey residents will go up](https://whyy.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/electricity-utility-meter-ap-2023-03-15.jpg)
From Camden and Cherry Hill to Trenton and the Jersey Shore, what about life in New Jersey do you want WHYY News to cover? Let us know.
Most New Jersey residents will spend more on electricity starting June 1. The state’s annual electricity auction for basic generation service, or BGS, is driving the uptick. According to the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities, electric bills for most residents and small to medium-sized businesses served by the four electric distribution companies will increase on an average by at least $20.
Why is there an auction?
Per state law, electric companies are required to buy at market rate the energy they need to serve customers, who do not switch to a third-party supplier.
The companies submit proposals on how they will buy electricity through the auction. Unlike the online marketplace eBay, the prices at the auction start high and decrease with each bid until suppliers are no longer willing to offer a lower bid at which they can provide adequate service.
The cost decided at auction is sent directly to ratepayers.
Who is PJM Interconnection and how much of a factor are they?
PJM Interconnection is a regional transmission organization, or RTO, that coordinates the movement of electricity in 13 states and the District of Columbia. They are also charged with maintaining the electrical grid.
The grid operator held a capacity auction last July that saw record totals, which BPU President Christine Guhl-Sadovy said was the main driver behind the auction results.
“[The] results are the culmination of several issues: rapidly increasing demand for electricity, coupled with limited supply growth due to lagging new generation interconnection, and flawed market dynamics in the PJM region,” she said.
New Jersey
These NJ grocery stores are making it harder to buy eggs; see why
Egg prices soar in the US due to bird flu outbreak
Shoppers in the U.S. are seeing egg prices soar and purchase limits imposed due to a bird flu outbreak affecting supply.
Grocery stores across New Jersey are making it harder to snag extra eggs by enacting a purchase limit as a deadly outbreak of avian flu has caused a strain in supply, leaving grocery store shelves empty and driving up prices.
Walmart, Trader Joe’s and Costco, which have several locations across the Garden State, are the latest in a handful of retailers scrambling to keep eggs in stock while limiting purchases to curb customer hoarding.
Trader Joe’s is limiting egg purchases to one carton per customer, per day, to ensure shoppers who need eggs are able to purchase them when they shop, the grocery store said in a Monday statement to USA TODAY.
The egg crisis has been documented heavily on social media, with customers disheartened by empty shelves and skyrocketing prices. Here’s a list of the stores that are limiting their customers’ purchasing powers, or enacting slightly different rules.
Are there egg limits at Trader Joe’s?
Trader Joe’s is limiting egg purchases to one dozen per customer per day in all stores across the U.S., the grocer confirmed with USA TODAY.
Are there eggs limits at Costco?
Costco, which has over 20 locations in New Jersey, said it is limiting customers to three cartons of eggs per visit, aiming to prevent individuals from buying excessive amounts to ensure others have access to eggs, CNN reported. The store typically sells two- and four-dozen cartons.
Are there egg limits at Walmart?
Walmart said they are not imposing purchase limits nationally, except on 60-count cartons, which have been limited to two per purchase, a spokesperson for the retailer told USA TODAY on Tuesday.
Are there egg limits at Whole Foods?
Several media outlets including Tasting Table have reported Whole Foods is limiting customers to three cartons per customer.
Are there egg limits at Aldi?
Aldi, which has 63 locations in New Jersey, has not announced a company-wide policy regarding egg shortages, although egg availability appears to affect certain stores. For example, a customer turned to Reddit on Sunday to share a sign at the Aldi in Edison that limited customers to two cartons.
Why is there an egg shortage?
Eggs are becoming difficult to find due to the rise in highly pathogenic avian influenza, a strain of what is known as the bird flu. The strain has decimated the supply of egg-laying poultry since January 2022.
That, combined with factors including inflation, has directly impacted the average price of eggs. As of the end of January, the wholesale price of a large carton on eggs in the New York market rose to an average an average of $7.63 per dozen, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.
Lori Comstock is a New Jersey-based journalist with the Mid-Atlantic Connect Team.
New Jersey
Track school closings, delays in NY and NJ for Wednesday, Feb. 11
![Track school closings, delays in NY and NJ for Wednesday, Feb. 11 Track school closings, delays in NY and NJ for Wednesday, Feb. 11](https://images.foxtv.com/static.fox5ny.com/www.fox5ny.com/content/uploads/2024/01/1280/720/SCHOOL-CLOSINGS-WINTER.jpg?ve=1&tl=1)
How much snow NYC can expect tonight, tomorrow
Nick Gregory has the forecast.
NEW YORK – Schools across New York and New Jersey announced delayed openings for Wednesday morning as a winter storm is expected to bring 1 to 3 inches of snow to the Tri-State area.
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School closings and delays
New York
- Central Islip School District: 2 Hour Delay
- Deer Park School District: 2 Hour Delay
- East Islip School District: 2 Hour Delay
- Half Hollow Hills School Dist.: 2 Hour Delay
- Huntington School District: 2 Hour Delay
- Islip School District: 2 Hour Delay
- L.I. School For The Gifted: 2 Hour Delay
- Marlboro Central School District: 2 Hour Delay
- Wyandanch School District: 2 Hour Delay
New Jersey
- Barnegat Township School District: 2 Hour Delay
- Middletown Township School District: 2 Hour Delay
- Somerset Co. Educational Svcs. Comm. Sch. Dist.: 90 Minute Delay
- The Children’s Center Of Monmouth County: 2 Hour Delay
- Totowa School District: 1 Hour Delay
Track real-time closings and delays below:
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