Universal Express

Universal Express (pinksheets|USXP) claimed to be a transportation and logistics service company and was registered in Nevada and headquartered in Boca Raton, Florida. [http://www.sec.gov/litigation/complaints/comp18636.htm Complaint: Universal Express, Inc., Richard Altomare, Chris Gunderson, Mark Neuhaus, George Sandhu, Spiga Limited, and Tarun Mendiratta.] However, investigation by the SEC clearly revealed that the primary business of USXP was the production of and distribution of billions of illegal, unregistered shares. The money from these sales went directly to support the lavish lifestyle of Richard Altomare and his supporters. Some funds were diverted to advertising designed to push the sale of additional shares.

CEO Richard A. Altomare took control of the defunct Packaging Plus Services in 1988, and immediately began issuing billions of illegal and unregistered shares of stock, [http://www.usxp.com/companies/universal/faq/ Universal Express Frequently Asked Questions ] ] before the company collapsed in 2007. In later years, the company became known for accusations of naked short selling and questionable S.E.C. filings. [http://select.nytimes.com/2007/06/22/business/22norris.html?_r=1&n=Top%2fNews%2fBusiness%2fColumns%2fFloyd%20Norris&oref=slogin] [ [http://www.usxp.com/companies/universal/pr/pr.asp?prtitle=Universal+Express+CEO+Requests+Investigation+into+Ex-Clearing+Portfolios Universal Express CEO Requests Investigation into Ex-Clearing Portfolios ] ] A receiver was appointed for Universal Express by a federal judge at the request of the S.E.C. The judge ordered Universal and its top officers to pay $21.9 million and barred them from future penny stock sales. [http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/23/business/23sec.html?scp=4&sq=universal+express&st=nyt]

Altomare was ordered to prison for contempt of court in April 2008. [ [http://norris.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/04/21/jail-for-altomare/ Jail for Altomare? - Floyd Norris - Business - New York Times Blog ] ] As of May, 2008, he was resident in the Metropolitan Correctional Center, New York City. [ [http://www.bop.gov/iloc2/InmateFinderServlet?Transaction=NameSearch&LastName=Altomare&Middle=Alexande&FirstName=Richard&Race=W&Sex=M Search of the Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator] ]

ervices

The company's UniversalPost network claimed to provide support infrastructure for private Postal Service Centers. However, independent contacts with the claimed partner postal center revealed they were not aware of any relationship they had with USXP. It's Luggage Express service allowed travelers to have their luggage collected and delivered separately from their personal travel arrangements.

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