A $7.7 million final judgment issued on February 24, 2017, against five defendants has concluded the Securities and Exchange Commission's fraud lawsuit against Wings Network, also known as Tropikgadget. The agency had initiated its legal action in February 2015, alleging the company operated a fraudulent securities offering and a pyramid scheme. Wings Network, operating under the Tropikgadget brand, attracted millions of dollars from affiliates across the globe before regulatory authorities intervened.
The court's decision on February 24, 2017, specifically targeted Andrew Arrambide of Utah and Paulo Hideki Koga of Brazil. Three Florida-based shell companies—Uninvest Financial Services, Corp., RST5 Investments LLC, and Parkway Real Estate LLC—also faced judgments. These entities were found liable for their roles in the scheme. The court issued permanent injunctions, prohibiting them from future violations of the Securities Act and from promoting pyramid schemes.
Disgorgement orders accompanied these judgments, requiring the defendants to return ill-gotten gains. Andrew Arrambide was ordered to pay $106,568. Paulo Hideki Koga forfeited $528,344. The Florida shell companies faced substantially larger penalties: Uninvest Financial Services disgorged $4,815,892, RST5 Investments paid $2,017,765, and Parkway Real Estate handed over $312,185. These payments contribute to the total recovery for victims.
Earlier judgments in the case had already targeted the core entities and other key promoters. Wings Network (Tropikgadget) itself received a $26.9 million judgment. Compasswinner was ordered to pay $8.1 million, and Happy SGPS faced a $1.1 million judgment. Individual promoters also bore significant financial consequences. Sergio Henrique Tanaka disgorged $1.9 million. Carlos Luis da Silveira Barbosa forfeited $300,284, and Claudio de Oliveira Pereira Campos paid $150,000.
The SEC also secured judgments against Viviane Amaral Rodrigues, who disgorged $462,404, and Wesley Brandao Rodrigues, who paid $162,404. Simonia de Cassia Silva rounded out the list of individual defendants with a $141,307 disgorgement order. In total, the Securities and Exchange Commission recovered $46.8 million from Wings Network and its extensive network of affiliates. This money is earmarked for distribution to the victims of the fraudulent scheme.
The SEC's intervention followed public warnings about Wings Network's operations. Daily Exposed, an independent online publication, had reviewed Wings Network in December 2013, more than a year before the SEC filed its lawsuit. This early warning highlighted the potential for fraud. It also showed how regulatory action often moves slower than the rapid spread of investment schemes.
Such schemes typically promise high returns on minimal investment, primarily through recruitment rather than genuine product sales. Participants pay fees to join, then earn commissions by recruiting new members who also pay fees. This structure inevitably collapses as new recruits become harder to find, leaving most participants, especially those at the bottom, with significant losses. The SEC actively pursues these cases under its mandate to protect investors and maintain fair and orderly markets.
The February 28, 2017, press release from the SEC confirmed that "the court's entry of the final judgments concludes the SEC's litigation of this matter in its entirety." No further legal action is anticipated in this specific case.