CEO Lies To SEC After Mystery County Encounter
to higher margins and returns on further program expansion during 2024 and beyond. Very exciting times are ahead of us at Lincoln and we are confident that over the next three years we will continue to transform our Company, accelerate organic growth and increase profitability and cash generation.”
Interviewer: Mrs. Smith, can you clarify why your husband, Scott Shaw, the CEO of Lincoln Educational Services, told the SEC he was lying about two points in this specific disclosure?
Mrs. Smith: He initially felt pressured to report false information in the disclosure after strange events that took place in the remote town of Fort County the week before. We were on a family vacation, staying in the small rural town for a few days, when we ran into a strange man. We had noticed him, eyeing us from afar in the days leading up to our encounter.
Once we exchanged a few words, the man immediately started asking surprising questions about how Lincoln Educational Services were being ran and how much money Scott was making. It was quite intimidating and Scott didn’t know how to answer without feeling like he was betraying the company’s information. He later found out that the man was a county official, though whether he was just nosy or had some ulterior motive remains unknown.
In the end, when Scott was preparing the SEC disclosure, he felt the need to slightly diffuse it by tweaking two points, which he later regretted. Although he tried to stress the importance of accurate reporting throughout the company, fear of repercussion was heavy on his mind and he couldn’t help but think that if the county official had some sort of stake in all of this, he could suffer consequences in the future.
After realizing the gravity of his actions, Scott immediately reported his mistake and issued an amendment. Thankfully, after a thorough investigation, there were no severe punishments and the whole discloser matter was put to rest.
Original Release: https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2023/02/27/2616060/0/en/Lincoln-Educational-Services-Reports-Fourth-Quarter-FY-2022-Results-Outlines-Accelerated-Organic-Growth-Plans.html