CHICAGO — An investigation into an alleged “pump-and-dump” investment fraud scheme has resulted in the indictment of seven people and the seizure of more than $214 million by federal law enforcement in Chicago.
The alleged “pump-and-dump” scheme, which unfolded between November 2024 and February 2025, involved a group of individuals in China who posed as U.S.-based investment advisors on social media and messaging platforms and used their positions to falsely promise significant returns from investments in a company in China, according to an indictment returned Thursday in U.S. District Court in Chicago.
The company that was allegedly being promoted, China Liberal Education Holdings, Ltd., which was incorporated in the Cayman Islands, purportedly provided educational services in China…