SEC Brings Civil Securities Fraud Action Against Principals of Hedge Fund Palisades Master Fund, Alleging Fraud, Self-Dealing, Misuse of Fund Assets and Use of a “Side Pocket” to Misrepresent the Fund’s Value to Its Investors

According to a complaint filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Defendants Paul T. Mannion, Jr. (Mannion), and Andrew S. Reckles (Reckles), through the investment advisers they controlled, defrauded investors in hedge fund Palisades Master Fund, L.P. (Fund), by misstating the value of certain Fund assets, stealing from the Fund and failing to disclose material information about Fund assets.  In reports to Fund investors, Mannion and Reckles reported that the Fund’s investment in World Health Alternatives, Inc. (WHA), a medical staffing company, was worth over $19 million, even though they knew that the investment was worth millions less than the reported value.  The Defendants also allegedly stole and exercised WHA warrants owned by the Fund and failed to disclose their private sales of WHA stock.  Finally, in a transaction unrelated to WHA, Mannion and Reckles are alleged to have concealed their short position in Radyne Corporation at the time that they invested in that corporation’s PIPE offering.  The SEC seeks an injunction barring future securities law violations, disgorgement of unlawful profits and civil penalties.  This article summarizes the SEC’s Complaint.

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