Stock offering may be bogus

The Pennsylvania Securities Commission issued a cease and desist order against the Westlake Village company Semisub Inc. and corporate officers Curtiss Jackson and Joshua Heller, also from Westlake, for the sale of unregistered securities and a promise of financial gain.

Jackson was Semisub's chief executive officer and chair; Heller was a "private equity associate" of Semisub.

According to Pennsylvania authorites, Semisub was in the business of developing, owning and operating proprietary semisubmersible vessels for the tourism industry and was offering shares of common stock for sale to residents of the state.

The minimum individual investment was to be $50,000 in a total offering that amounted to $8 million.

Heller's sales commission as a "private equity associate" was 8 percent for the sale of the stock.

Semisub said it would use the investor funds to expand vessel construction and other capital purposes. The company sent materials to prospective investors saying it had raised $5.8 million to date and that a 12 percent rate of return was expected for the stock during its first year.

The return on investment was based on Semisub having one vessel in the water doing business, but once Semisub had four vessels in the water the return would increase to 54 percent, authorities said.

In February, Heller was said to have telephoned at least one Pennsylvania resident offering the company's stock for sale with the promise of making "huge" capital gains in the "not so distant future."

Heller told the resident that he would not be expected to do anything else for his investment other than to send a check.

Officials said any further solicitations or sales made by Semisub would be a violation of the state's securities law.

Any person who is solicited by or has information about Jackson and Heller is asked to notify the Pennsylvania Securities Commission by calling (717) 787-8061 in Harrisburg, the state capital.