On August 4th, 2012, Zeek Rewards' "Acting" COO Gregory Caldwell dismissed critics as "self-appointed" and "unprofessional," claiming they acted on false information. This statement came weeks before the SEC shut down the company, raising questions about management's prior knowledge of the impending investigation.
Details of Zeek Rewards CEO Paul Burks' interactions with the SEC before the company's collapse are slowly emerging. Many Zeek Rewards executives held affiliate accounts, participating in the alleged Ponzi scheme. A key question remains: how much did corporate executives know about the SEC investigation?
Such knowledge, if suppressed, would have put Zeek's management in an advantageous position as investors. While regular affiliates reinvested daily ROIs and recruited new investors, unaware until the shutdown, executives with SEC awareness could have quietly cashed out from their personal accounts.
A distinct pattern emerged in the final months of Zeek Rewards, particularly among prominent executive management. Former COO Dawn Wright-Olivares disappeared from public view after telling affiliates on June 26th that Zeek Rewards could not pay unless they "deposited more money" into e-wallet accounts.
A week later, on July 30th, Zeek Rewards Sales Director Darryle Douglas vanished, citing "personal matters." The company never explained these matters, and Douglas made no public appearances after the announcement.
Keith Laggos, a paid Zeek Rewards consultant, also claimed around this time that the FTC would shut down Zeek Rewards. He began promoting Lyoness as a "Plan B" to his Zeek Rewards downline. Laggos was fired as a consultant on or around July 24th. It remains unclear if he also lost his "$40,000 a month" affiliate account.
Three of Zeek Rewards' top public figures went underground within a month. Just under three weeks later, the SEC closed the company, citing it as a Ponzi scheme. This sequence of events suggests a typical Ponzi scheme pre-planned exit strategy. All involved individuals appear to have secured legal counsel and ceased public statements.