The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a lawsuit against Joseph J. Nantomah, Investors Capital LLC, Global Investors Capital LLC, and High Income Performance Partners LLC.

The SEC’s complaint, submitted at Wisconsin Eastern District Court on August 1, 2025, concerns a real estate-related offering fraud perpetrated by Nantomah through three Wisconsin limited liability companies he owned and controlled.

The complaint alleges that, from approximately May 2020 through at least January 2024 (the “Relevant Time Period”), the defendants solicited investors by promising to purchase, fix, and flip real estate for profit.

The defendants allegedly collectively raised at least $1.9 million from at least 30 investors throughout the United States. Unbeknownst to investors, many of whom were members of the Nigerian-American community, Nantomah misused their money by spending at least 80% of it on himself and his other ventures, and not on the promised real estate transactions.

Nantomah held himself out as an “Incredibly Successful Entrepreneur” who amassed a multi-million dollar real estate portfolio after emigrating from Africa to Wisconsin in 2016 “with just $4,700,” to become a “notable and sought after millionaire investor” who serves as a speaker, life coach, mentor, consultant, and philanthropist.

Nantomah made these and similar representations on his website, on social media sites, during presentations to potential investors, and during financial coaching seminars.

Nantomah’s story was misleading. According to Nantomah, he had sufficient assets when he emigrated to America to support himself and his family without needing to work.

Likewise, Nantomah’s claims on his website in 2024 that he owned “real estate assets currently valued at over $23 million,” were also untrue. According to public records searches, during the Relevant Time Period, Nantomah and the entities he controlled—including Defendants Investors Capital, Global Investors Capital, and High Income Performance Partners (together, the “Entity Defendants,”) – owned only 11 properties with a collective value of approximately $1 million.

Nantomah further enticed investors with promises of lucrative returns on investments (or “ROI”) in a year or less. Defendants promised different investors a variety of different ROI, typically in the range of 10% to 30%, but at times higher. Defendants usually promised to make a payment to investors within three to 12 months consisting of the ROI and the return of their principal investment.

Defendants usually entered into written investment agreements with investors making their first investment. The agreements typically stated that the relevant Entity Defendant would provide services including purchasing, fixing, and flipping properties on behalf of investors and “acquiring investment property that befits the investment fund.” Defendants told investors that profits would be generated through Nantomah’s investment of their funds in either a specific property or in unspecified real estate to be purchased, renovated, and sold.

Some investors subsequently entered into verbal agreements with Nantomah and one or more of the Entity Defendants for additional real estate investments, subject to terms similar to the terms of their initial investments.

Regardless of whether the investment agreements were written or verbal, Nantomah told investors that the money they invested was to be used for real estate development projects with repayment of their investment principal and ROI by a specified time.

Despite these core representations and promises, the defendants spent only a small fraction (less than one-fifth) of the investors’ money on purchasing or renovating real estate.

Instead, Nantomah commingled investor funds in his personal bank accounts and accounts for the Entity Defendants and his other businesses, and often used the investors’ funds for other purposes, including paying his personal living expenses, buying jewelry and automobiles, and paying for travel and entertainment.

Although the written investment agreements identified at least 10 specific properties that Defendants were going to purchase, fix, and flip, public records show that during the Relevant Time Period, seven of those 10 properties were never owned by Defendants and, of the three properties that were acquired by Nantomah or a company he controlled, two were subject to foreclosure proceedings.

Defendants have not paid most investors as promised in the written and verbal investment agreements. Investors who contacted Nantomah seeking repayment of their investment principal and ROI when their investment period ended were met with a series of excuses and delays.

In addition, several of the investors sued Nantomah and/or the Entity Defendants when the Defendants failed to meet their payment obligations. Despite these lawsuits, Defendants nonetheless continued to solicit funds for additional “successful investments” without disclosing that Defendants had not repaid prior investors.

The SEC accuses the defendants of violations of the federal securities laws, namely Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder.

The regulator claims that there is a reasonable likelihood that, unless restrained and enjoined, Defendants will continue to violate these federal securities laws.

Accordingly, the SEC seeks a judgment against the defendants that: (a) imposes permanent injunctive relief, including prohibiting Nantomah from again offering or selling securities; (b) orders disgorgement of ill-gotten gains plus prejudgment interest; and (c) imposes civil monetary penalties.