PHILADELPHIA — Federal prosecutors Monday accused the chief executive of National Lampoon and two other people of trying to inflate the company’s stock price by paying people to buy shares. Daniel Laikin and two others were charged with conspiracy and securities fraud for allegedly manipulating the stock price of Los Angeles-based National Lampoon, the company that owns the rights to the “Vacation” and “Animal House” movies.
The U.S. Attorney’s office and the Securities and Exchange Commission said the kickbacks were paid to people to buy and hold the company’s stock, creating the illusion of market interest. To make the purchases seem more legitimate, the stock buys were timed to coincide with company news releases, prosecutors said.
“To borrow a line from ‘Animal House,’ the rules lost,” U.S. Attorney Laurie Magid said, referring to the film starring John Belushi, right. The Associated Press; Denver Post file photo
