“America’s Prophet” Sean David Morton charged with $6 million securities fraud

Date: Thursday, March 11, 2010
Author: Hedgetracker.com

The SEC has charged Sean David Morton, a self-styled psychic who claimed the ability to predict the stock market, with securities fraud for raising up to $6 million from investors after lying to them about his former successes. The SEC has also charged “three corporate entities that Morton co-owns with his wife Melissa Morton under the umbrella of the Delphi Associates Investment Group,” according to the SEC press release. “America’s Prophet,” as Mr. Morton calls himself, “made numerous materially false representations relating to his psychic abilities in order to solicit investors for the Delphi Investment Group.”

In addition to lying to investors about the certification and auditing of the accounts’ profits, the SEC alleges Mr. Morton diverted soof the investors’ funds and instead of investing with foreign currency trading firms. According to the press release, Mr. Morton was promoting his psychic abilities to anticipate stock market highs and lows in the summer of 2006. George S. Canellos, Director of the SEC's New York Regional Office, stated, "Morton's self-proclaimed psychic powers were nothing more than a scam to attract investors and steal their money."