Steinbeck Commerbank scam pumping shares/holdings in Faze E.
In November last year I was contacted by a certain Daniel Turner from a brokers called Steinbeck Commerbank, (based in Zurich) who was recommending buying shares/holdings in a company called Faze E. I was told Faze E were a Californian based company, who had developed a drug called Crestor, which is used to reduce Cholesterol levels.
Crestor was being brought to the market imminently, and as such Faze E was expecting a takeover bid from Astra Zenica for the rights to produce Crestor. Subsequently I purchased 1,750 shares/holdings for £2818.47 in Faze-E Inc through Steinbeck Commerbank.
Grovesnor Pierce were the executing broker, and I spoke with a gentleman called Michael Dexter. Grovesnor Pierce were based in Geneva, and their address and telephone numbers are listed below. I was advised to pay into an account in Copenhagen, in the Jyske bank, into an account called Victoria Management. I have a copy of the agreement, and the paperwork gives the impression of a genuine company - a strange statement I know, but I hope you understand what I mean. Its all very confusing I know......
Anyway, between November and early January 2003 I was contacted a few more times by Daniel Turner regarding other shares, but I wanted to wait and see what would happen with Faze E before making any other purchases. In March of this year Steinbeck were taken over/amalgamated with Standard European Consultants, and I was kept informed of the Faze-E situation by a fellow called Mike Foster, and I also spoke with another agent from Standard European Consultants called Pierre Reynold.
They tried to get me interested in other shares, and one that I remember was with a company called Eidos, who are in the oil business but I did not make any purchases. When I enquired about Faze E, I was always told something along the lines that the drug Crestor was undergoing FDA assessments, and basically being approved for sale.
Recently Crestor has come on to the market, and I was expecting some news from Standard European Consultants regarding the possibility of cashing in the shares, but I heard nothing.
So I tried to make contact with Standard European Consultants by telephone, only to find they were no longer at the same location, and there were no details of any new address. The secretary at the building was no help.... This was when I started to become a little concerned.
I then received a telephone message on my mobile phone (number unknown) from someone (I'm sure they left a name, but I managed to lose the message.....Doh!!) a few weeks ago wanting to talk to me about the shares, but no other detail was given other than there was nothing to worry about. Unfortunately no phone number was left for me to call back, and I have since heard nothing.
As a last resort, I tried to contact Grovesnor Pierce on the telephone number on their paperwork, but the number was not recognised. So I wrote a letter to Michael Dexter (of Grovesnor Pierce), sending it to their address in Geneva, but I have heard nothing.
I have searched the internet, and Standard European Consultants have a website at www.standardeuropeanconsultants.com and I tried contacting them through their 'contact us' link, but have had no reply. The only thing I have found about Faze E on the internet is the mention of the company on you website, and that is when the alarm bells really started ringing.
So here is a list of the people I have spoken to:
Steinbeck Commerbank (based in Zurich) - no address or phone number, and I dealt with Daniel Turner.
Grovesnor Pierce - Their address is (or was....) 14 Rue du Rhone, Geneva, CH-1204, Switzerland. Tel +41 22819 1826, FAX +41 22819 1998.
I dealt with Michael Dexter at Grovesnor Pierce.
Standard European Consultants - The Hauge, Netherlands. Tel +31 7042 62282, Fax +31 7042 62111
The people I dealt with at Standard European Consultants were Mike Foster and Pierre Reynold
The bank where I paid my hard earned cash to was JYSKE Bank, in Copenhagen. The account number was 970837-2606, with swift number JYBADKKK, and the account name was Victoria Management ltd.
The initial phone calls I received in November were at my workplace, but I gave my mobile number for ease of contact during the day. Having read on your website about the 'Boiler rooms', I am pretty certain that this was the type of scheme being operated. I know the amounts of money I'm talking about are not huge compared with some poor souls, but it is my hard earned cash at the end of the day.
I hope this is enough information for you, and I would be very grateful indeed for any information/news. Obviously if I have been part of a scam, and action is taken, I would be more than happy for my story to be used as evidence.
Mark W.
A quick update.
I have just had the letter I sent to Grovesnor Pierce returned as the name/address is not recognised, so it looks like Grovesnor Pierce either did not exist or have done a runner......
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