Litigation Releases (Joseph Geromini)

U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Litigation Release No. 26555 / May 15, 2026

Securities and Exchange Commission v. Joseph Geromini, No. 1-21-cv-12880 (D.N.J. filed June 23, 2021)

SEC Obtains Final Judgment as to New Jersey Man for Alleged Investor Fraud and Misappropriation

On May 8, 2026, the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey entered a final judgment as to Joseph Geromini of Somers Point, New Jersey, in the SEC's civil enforcement action against him.

The SEC's complaint alleged that between August 2018 and May 2019, Geromini, who at the time was the Chief Operating Officer of an early-stage medical devices company based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, lied to and stole more than $200,000 from investors and used the funds for personal expenses. According to the complaint, Geromini disseminated false and misleading offering documents and financial models to investors that failed to account for his ongoing theft of investor proceeds. In addition, Geromini allegedly made materially false and misleading statements to investors about the company's cash burn rate and use of proceeds.

Previously, without admitting or denying the allegations in the SEC's complaint, Geromini consented to a judgment, entered by the Court on July 1, 2021, which permanently enjoined him from violating the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder and prohibited him from acting as an officer or director of a publicly-traded company. The final judgment includes the previously-ordered injunctive relief and orders Geromini liable for disgorgement of $98,083, payment of which is deemed satisfied by the order of restitution entered against him in the parallel criminal case, United States v. Geromini, No. 1:21-cr-0048 (D.N.J.).

Geromini pled guilty in the parallel criminal case, and, on June 10, 2025, was sentenced to six months in prison, six months of home confinement and 3 years of supervised release and ordered to pay $98,083 in restitution.

The SEC's litigation in this matter has concluded. The SEC's investigation was conducted by Brian R. Higgins and Oreste P. McClung and was supervised by Brendan McGlynn, Scott A. Thompson in the SEC's Philadelphia Regional Office. The litigation was led by Kara F. Sweet and supervised by Gregory R. Bockin.