Secret Service raid ASD offices.... at Nobullshit Network Forum

okosh · 08-05-2008, 11:44 PM

ASD CashGenerator offices have been raided by the Secret Service

Quote:

The United States Attorney's Office in Washington, DC has released a press release calling AdSurfDaily a "massive internet-based wire fraud scheme" akin to a "Ponzi scheme masked as an advertising company." Ponzi schemes operate under the principle that money from new investors is used to pay off earlier investors until the whole scheme collapses.

The federal government has seized two homes, in Florida and South Carolina, and about $53 million, according to U.S Attorney Jeffrey A. Taylor and U.S. Secret Service Special Agent in Charge John Mrha in Orlando.
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Updated 5:29 p.m.

The Florida Attorney General’s Office reports it has received 30 complaints about Ad Surf Daily Inc., an Internet advertising company based in Quincy, and that it is investigating allegations that the company is involved in “improper marketing tactics.”

The office has received nearly 100 calls from people asking if the company is legitimate, said spokeswoman Sandi Copes.

Copes would not elaborate on the nature of the office's investigation, but said more information will be available Wednesday.

ASD had its offices raided this morning by the U.S. Secret Service. The home of the company’s president, Andy Bowdoin Jr., in Quincy was also raided.

Check Tallahassee.com for updates.
Updated 3:45 p.m.

In a press release dated July 3, the Gadsden County Chamber of Commerce announced that Ad Surf Daily Inc., an Internet advertising company, had chosen Quincy as its corporate headquarters.

Today, two buildings that ASD used in Quincy were raided by the U.S. Secret Service, along with the home of the company’s president, Andy Bowdoin Jr.

The press release states that anyone with a Web site that markets a product or service can pay to advertise on the ASD Web site. The advertisers can earn rebates by viewing other Web sites for 10 to 15 minutes a day.

Bowdoin and his wife, Faye, created the company in 2006, according to the press release. ASD had grown to 60 employees and expected to employ more than 150 people by the end of the year.

“We started here,” Bowdoin is quoted as saying, about Quincy. “This is our home, and we plan to stay here.”

The company’s advertising sales in the last six months was estimated at $40 million, with almost 75,000 members in its network, the press release states. Bowdoin expected sales of more than $100 million in 2008.

The press release is peppered with quotes from the Chamber of Commerce, praising the company for bringing “high-wage employment opportunities” to Quincy.

About three weeks later, the chamber announced that it is unable to "endorse" any member businesses, including ASD. That press release also said the chamber had not been notified by any "authorized agencies" of formal complaints against ASD. The chamber encouraged consumers to contact the Better Business Bureau and other state agencies to "make informed business decisions."

Attempts to reach Bowdoin were unsuccessful. No one answered the door this afternoon at Bowdoin’s lakefront house at 8 Gilcrease Lane.
Updated 2:15 p.m.

Thomas Andy Bowdoin Jr., who is listed in Nevada as AdSurfDaily Inc’s president, secretary and treasurer, cannot be reached at his place of business. But in a message on his answering machine aimed at his “customer service people,” he tells them not to answer the phones or make any comments about the investigation until the company's attorneys work things out.
1:30 p.m.

The U.S. Secret Service has been in Quincy executing three search warrants since 6:30 a.m. in connection with its investigation of AdSurfDaily Inc.

Eight agents are searching the business’s offices at 13 S. Calhoun St., an office next door and the home of the owner, Thomas Bowdoin Jr., 8 Gilcrease Lane.

The company was incorporated on Dec. 14, 2006 in Nevada and provides advertising space for Web sites on the Internet, according to documents filed with the Florida Department of State.

Agents are searching documents and computers, said Robert Munson, resident agent in charge of Tallahassee. The Secret Service office in Orlando is handling the investigation.

“I really can’t comment on the investigation because it’s ongoing,” Munson said.

The Tallahassee Democrat has a reporter on scene and will report more information as it becomes available.
First post

U.S. Secret Service agents are raiding an Internet marketing company in Quincy, said Lt. Jim Corder of the Gasden County Sheriff's Office. The Sheriff's Office is assisting in the raid of AdSurfDaily Inc., which is located on South Calhoun Street.

A statement posted Friday on the company's Web site, ASD Update, says the U.S. Attorney's Office in the District of Columbia has directed the company to stop moving funds into or out of company accounts.

Luc · 08-07-2008, 07:09 PM

This is NOT OVER yet. The Officers didn’t make any decisions… There were NO HEARINGS on the side of ASD so far. Andy Bowdoin had indicated that THEY HAD NOT EVEN SEEN THE CHARGES yet. He said that there should be another conference call on Friday with more detailed informations. So please, don’t draw too fast conclusions!

Let me explain what happened: The Prosecutors used to shut down any business when people do complaint, they do this to protect the consumers and we (ASD members) have to understand that. They do this to also evaluate the situation and take action. To sum up: "We close and shut down everything first and we make the hearings afterwards…" Andy has not been heard yet… This is a typical american method to proceed that way (I find this method "a bit" unfair… but it’s just my thought)… it’s different in Europe.

I've also heard (in a conference call hold yesterday) that ALL money are on HOLD and if ASD members want their money back, they would be able to do it but not right now.

okosh, when I read your posts on TG or MMG, am laughing all the way (I thought Aussies were more serious). You asked on the MMG forum where are the cheerleaders? My answer is that most of the ASD members have received instructions to NOT respond in forums otherwise they could jeopardize ASD. In my opinion it is best just to stay out, or if we go in the forums with NO intention of posting… that’s ok! We are simply gathering more infos understanding that it will be loaded with opinions, emotions, half truths, rumours, lies,...

The U.S. Attorney's office made the Civil Complaint public in a 101 page complaint containing all Allegations to which ASD will need to reply. As of the time we write this, NO CHARGES HAVE BEEN FILED and there are NO CRIMINAL COMPLAINTS OR CHARGES as yet. It has yet to be seen if this remains a civil complaint challenging the legality of the method of business. We must realize that this is a complaint and ASD will need to address and reply to it as well as defend itself as well as the officers and individuals named in the complaint. We have to remind that IT IS A PROSECUTOR’S JOB TO PAINT AS UGLY AND EGREGIOUS a picture of the enterprise and those involved as possible without regard to the "OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY" will be ASD's responsibility to represent their case regarding every part of the complaint.

I will not comment on it, rather, I am hoping that ASD will be able to affectively address and overcome all of this and it is up to their legal team to refute the allegations in the complaint and clear ASD's name and business model. We also need to remember that media needs SENSATIONALISM to get readership and a department filing a complaint has to paint EVERYTHING in the WORST POSSIBLE light without ANY commentary as to FACTS or CIRCUMSTANCES that may disprove or explain allegations or perceptions expressed.

One thing to keep in mind also is that people who now fear loss and who may have not complained before will create an increase in complaints in an effort to avoid loss (which most will argue is a possibility brought on by the raid rather than by ASD)

I have attended a couple of calls or webroom meetings that we were made aware of at the last minute and they have some good information regarding recommended courses of action for current members. I have heard an attorney, several business professionals, financial professionals and an advertising executive indicate that this test may create a paradigm shift in how this business model is perceived and validate this business model. I also can't tell you the number of business owners I have heard who have said that ASD has made a SIGNIFICANT difference in the business they are advertising and how many feel that ASD is a KEY piece of the puzzle in their strategy to BRAND themselves nationwide and worldwide.

The ASD members will receive instructions to take only CONSTRUCTIVE , POSITIVE actions and NOT negative actions. They will take actions in due time… A positive action would be to prepare and send to ASD member’s statements of the value that the advertising model has created for them or their business.

We - as ASD members - are angry and frustrated right now but we have to avoid reacting in the extreme, making up our minds about things and letting our emotions ride on every articles or posts we see. Forums will spread all kinds of informations, most of which are just people’s opinions. Many who post negatively in those places just love antagonizing people with no regard for accuracy or truth. Some believe ASD is bad and say so. Based on my experience, ASD members will NOT win anyone over to a supportive position in those sites and actually even if they do it doesn't matter because most of the ppl will not make the important decision.

In addition, posting angry statements, threats and even well intended but INACCURATE information in threads will do more to HARM ASD's cause than to help it. It is known that investigators will be visiting and keeping copies of blogs and forums and anything ASD that they can get their hands on. They are JUST DOING THEIR JOB and their job at present is TO FIND EVERYTHING THEY CAN TO SUPPORT THE COMPLAINT AND CHARGE. it is NOT THEIR JOB TO COLLECT INFORMATIONS THAT SUPPORT ASD (the defense) other than that which can be used AGAINST the defense.

We now have to wait to hear directly from ASD to see how they and their legal team communicate the status of the situation to us and how they address any and all complaints with the desired goal being to justify and validate the business model so that we (ASD members) can all return business with ASD.

The next call with Andy is supposed to be tomorrow (Friday from the time of the writing) and if I get important informations, I’ll let you know.

okosh · 08-07-2008, 10:17 PM

LOL...Don't shoot the messenger....ASD is dead and Andy is going to jail...
Sorry to those who lost money in this scam...

BTW...I don't post at MMG....Or at any other heavily censored forum....

Luc · 08-09-2008, 11:05 AM

Again, the gov's did their homework but their conclusion is prematured and uncompleted. The prosecutors don't fully understand this new business model and it's the responsibility to ASD to prove their model is not a Ponzi Scheme. Anyway as Andy said, he has not even seen any criminal charges against him so far… so wait and see!

And you are a BIG LIAR when you say that you don't post at any heavily censored forum. If MMG is for you a heavily censored forum, what about TG?... It's even WORSE!!!

It’s not that hard to find your posts on TalkGold either to criticize ASD or Golden Panda. Just an example here:
TALKGOLD

okosh · 08-10-2008, 06:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Luc

And you are a BIG LIAR when you say that you don't post at any heavily censored forum. If MMG is for you a heavily censored forum, what about TG?... It's even WORSE!!!

TG is NOT censored....But paid shills/scammers like you are shown the door

BTW...Andy got another medal....This time it's GOLD!!!!

Quote:

Scams worthy of gold medals

By Robert Trigaux, Times Business Editor
In print: Sunday, August 10, 2008

And the Olympic gold medals in conniving schemes best able to take your money goes to …

Scamsters based in Quincy and Miami. From a small North Florida town comes a major Internet-driven Ponzi scheme. And from a South Florida metropolis, a giant hacker attack on credit cards.

Sorry, Beijing. You've got the creme de la creme in athletes for now, but Florida's apparently home to today's best big-buck ripoff artists.

At least our state is doing its part for the economy: keeping the feds fully employed.

Why do we care? Because these scams are whoppers.

Quincy's case raises questions about the extraordinary pace at which a word-of-mouth Internet scheme — fueled all the more by online video testimonials — can spread.

And in Miami's case, it suggests major retailers may be woefully underprepared to defend customer data against more sophisticated hackers.

The Quincy scam, allegedly orchestrated by one Thomas A. "Andy" Bowdoin Jr., is still running low under the radar of major media, even though the feds say the amount of money filched is near $100-million while the people defrauded may approach 100,000.

In the past week or so, federal investigators seized a home in Quincy, a second home in South Carolina and froze close to $53-million in accounts at Bank of America. The feds say the property is tied to the Internet wire fraud scheme that Bowdoin and others allegedly operated out of a ex-flower shop in Quincy near Tallahassee.

Many scam victims are Floridians who invested after hearing pitches made at big conventions held in Tampa and Miami.

The federal complaint says Bowdoin, through a company called AdSurfDaily (ASD), operated a Ponzi scheme posing as an advertising company.

Here's how the feds say it worked. ASD operated an online advertising program that claimed to generate revenue by automatically rotating advertised Web sites into investors' Internet browsers on their computers. To wow investors, ASD agreed to pay a return of between $1.25 to $1.50 from every dollar handed over to ASD, as long as investors agreed to view a couple of Web sites for a few minutes each day.

The federal complaint says ASD did not really operate as a seller of ad services and there was no legitimate product being sold to support the profits ASD promised to pay. In other words, the feds say ASD paid off early investors with the money of new investors. That's what makes it a Ponzi scheme.

The Miami scam operated on an even grander scale.

The feds cracked a major case involving the theft and sale of more than 41-million credit and debit card numbers kept by such retailers as TJX Cos., BJ's Wholesale Club, OfficeMax, Boston Market, Barnes & Noble, Sports Authority, Forever 21 and DSW.

Chances are good thousands of plastic-carrying Times readers were affected, even if funds were not (yet) lost. Watch your credit card statements!

Eleven people were charged, including three Miami residents and others from Estonia, Ukraine, Belarus and China.

A grand jury indictment charged Albert Gonzalez with computer fraud, wire fraud, access device fraud, aggravated identity theft and conspiracy while operating out of a South Beach hotel. Gonzalez operated under aliases ranging from "Cumbajohny" to "Soupnazi."

"So far as we know, this is the single largest and most complex identity theft case ever charged in this country," said U.S. Attorney General Michael Mukasey.

For such epic misdeeds and for shame, gold medals all around.

Information from Times wires was used in this column. Robert Trigaux can be reached at trigaux@sptimes.com.

[Last modified: Aug 09, 2008 09:33 PM]

Column: Scams worthy of gold medals - St. Petersburg Times

NelsonN · 08-10-2008, 03:33 PM

Everytime I see a post anywhere by okosh and the other trouble makers my bullshit meter goes off the scale. These pathetic losers are the ones causing all this harm. They get together and complain to the SEC, FBI, and any agency they can harass to take action (okosh I believe is from Australia, same bullshit these days as the US).

Just like the government they think they are saving us from ourselves. These are the kinds of people that should be living in a communist country and not one that espouses freedom. (Sadly, as China has said repeatedly, the US is more of a socialist society than they are.)

Having said that, I am not naive, there are legitimate programs, but the majority are scams. The US should be investigating first before destroying any business (especially those that are registered with a state, there is no need for what they do when this is the case). But what can we expect when the police, in every state, brakes down a families home door, shoots their cats and dogs, and steps on the families necks (grandparents, the young kids, et al) to pin them down before hand cuffing them, and asks questions later. This is the reality we are living in, a police state. No more freedoms, just lip service.

And people like okosh, in any country with constitutional rights for its people, applaud this shit.

(And no, I am not a member of ASD or any program at the moment, and probably never will again.)

okosh · 08-11-2008, 03:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NelsonN

(And no, I am not a member of ASD or any program at the moment, and probably never will again.)

Still recovering from your losses in that EBL scam are you Nelson??

NelsonN · 08-11-2008, 11:31 AM

You have proof that EBL was a scam? I didn't think so. As far as I know, not even the government has proven its case, which is my point about all the programs that they attack, no proof. Guilty after the fact even without cause. Hmm.... isn't there something about innocent until proven guilty in the Constitution of the United States? But what would a pathetic loser like you know, you don't even have a life.

You don't have proof of many of the legitimate programs you have attacked in the past or present, all you do is cry wolf under every rock. What a dipshit.

The US government, that almighty wise entity. LOL! They forced e-gold to claim it was illegal, didn't they? That's just the way a police state operates, doesn't it? Which is my point here. This is not about any specific program.

okosh · 08-11-2008, 12:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NelsonN

You have proof that EBL was a scam? I didn't think so. As far as I know, not even the government has proven its case,

LOL....You must have lost a bundle on ebl

As for the rest....Make a thread in the war-zone if you wish but stop trolling the thread

NelsonN · 08-12-2008, 08:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by okosh

LOL....You must have lost a bundle on ebl

As for the rest....Make a thread in the war-zone if you wish but stop trolling the thread

LOL! And this coming from the number one troll in every single HYIP forum that I have ever posted on. LOL!