Opinion
Civil Action 23-cv-125 (OAW)
09-27-2024
UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, Plaintiff, v. APRIL SUE-CHANG LEE, IN HER CAPACITY AS FIDUCIARY OF THE ESTATE OF SEONG YEOL LEE, and AMERITRUST CORPORATION, Defendants, and BEESPOKE CAPITAL, INC., ALICE MEE-HYANG CHOI, APRIL SUE-CHANG LEE, and ELAINE CHOUNG-HEE LEE, Relief Defendants.
FINAL JUDGMENT AS TO APRIL SUE-CHANG LEE IN HER CAPACITY AS FIDUCIARY OF THE ESTATE OF SEONG YEOL LEE
OMAR A. WILLIAMS, UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
The Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) having filed a Complaint and April Sue-Change Lee, in her capacity as fiduciary of the estate of Seong Yeol Lee (“Defendant” or the “Estate”), having entered a general appearance, consented to the Court's jurisdiction over Defendant and the subject matter of this action, consented to entry of this Final Judgment without admitting or denying the allegations of the Complaint (except as to jurisdiction), waived findings of fact and conclusions of law, and waived any right to appeal from this Final Judgment:
I.
IT IS HEREBY ORDDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the Estate is liable for disgorgement of $3,255,668, representing Seong Yeol Lee's net profits from the conduct alleged in the Complaint, and prejudgment interest thereon in the amount of $589,000.
II.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that within 3 days after being served with a copy of this Final Judgment, Bank of America, N.A. (“Bank of America”) shall transfer to the Commission the entire balance of the following Bank of America account(s) which were frozen pursuant to an Order of this Court:
| Account Owner | Acct. Ending in: |
| Seong Yeol Lee & Jong Sun Kim | *5997 |
| Seong Yeol Lee & Jung Sook Moon | *1934 |
Bank of America may transmit payment electronically to the Commission, which will provide detailed ACH transfer/Fedwire instructions upon request. Payment may also be made directly from a bank account via Pay.gov through the SEC website at http://www.sec.gov/about/offices/ofm.htm. Bank of America also may transfer these funds by certified check, bank cashier's check, or United States postal money order payable to the Securities and Exchange Commission, which shall be delivered or mailed to
Enterprise Services Center
Accounts Receivable Branch
6500 South MacArthur Boulevard
Oklahoma City, OK 73169and shall be accompanied by a letter identifying the case title, civil action number, and name of this Court; and specifying that payment is made pursuant to this Final Judgment.
III.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that within 3 days after being served with a copy of this Final Judgment, T. Rowe Price shall transfer to the Commission the entire balance of the following T. Rowe Price account(s) which were frozen pursuant to an Order of this Court:
| Account Owner | Acct. Ending in: |
| Seong Yeol Lee | *0002 |
T. Rowe Price may transmit payment electronically to the Commission, which will provide detailed ACH transfer/Fedwire instructions upon request. Payment may also be made directly from a bank account via Pay.gov through the SEC website at http://www.sec.gov/about/offices/ofm.htm. T. Rowe Price also may transfer these funds by certified check, bank cashier's check, or United States postal money order payable to the Securities and Exchange Commission, which shall be delivered or mailed to
Enterprise Services Center
Accounts Receivable Branch
6500 South MacArthur Boulevard
Oklahoma City, OK 73169and shall be accompanied by a letter identifying the case title, civil action number, and name of this Court; and specifying that payment is made pursuant to this Final Judgment.
IV.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that within 3 days after being served with a copy of this Final Judgment, Keb Hana Bank USA (“Keb Hana”) shall transfer to the Commission the entire balance of the following Keb Hana account(s) which were frozen pursuant to an Order of this Court:
| Account Owner | Acct. Ending in: |
| Seong Yeol Lee | *9143 |
Keb Hana may transmit payment electronically to the Commission, which will provide detailed ACH transfer/Fedwire instructions upon request. Payment may also be made directly from a bank account via Pay.gov through the SEC website at http://www.sec.gov/about/offices/ofm.htm. Keb Hana also may transfer these funds by certified check, bank cashier's check, or United States postal money order payable to the Securities and Exchange Commission, which shall be delivered or mailed to
Enterprise Services Center
Accounts Receivable Branch
6500 South MacArthur Boulevard
Oklahoma City, OK 73169and shall be accompanied by a letter identifying the case title, civil action number, and name of this Court; and specifying that payment is made pursuant to this Final Judgment.
V.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the Commission may file a motion to appoint a sales agent to market and sell real property, purchased by Lee, at 180 Chestnut Ridge Road, Bedford, New York 10549 (Tax ID #: 83.19-2-4) (the “Bedford Property”). The Court previously granted the Commission's motion to file a Notice of Lis Pendens to cloud title to the Bedford Property.
VI.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the Commission shall hold amounts recovered from Bank of America, T. Rowe Price, and Keb Hana, together with any proceeds from the sale of the Bedford Property (the “Fund”) until further order of this Court. The SEC may propose a plan to distribute the Fund subject to the Court's approval, and the Court shall retain jurisdiction over the administration of any distribution of the Fund. Any proposed plan of distribution shall provide for notice to potential claimants, including any joint accountholders of Lee's accounts.
VII.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the Estate's payment of disgorgement and prejudgment interest ordered in Paragraph I shall be deemed satisfied by the Commission's collection of frozen funds from Bank of America, T. Rowe Price, Keb Hana, and proceeds from the sale of the Bedford Property.
VIII.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that this Court shall retain jurisdiction of this matter for the purposes of enforcing the terms of this Final Judgment.
IX.
There being no just reason for delay, pursuant to Rule 54(b) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the Clerk is ordered to enter this Final Judgment forthwith and without further notice.