alert The fund can't be withdrawal from Epik.com via Masterbucks wallet

[enamebroker]

It happened on 23rd Aug 2022 and this matter lasted almost one month without any process. Masterbucks.com declined my fund withdrawal and disabled the button of fund withdrawal. And I contacted Epik.com and got no further action even if Rob Monster got involved in it for two weeks. All the time I was told in email by management review.

What is wrong with Epik.com? Do you think it is normal to disable fund withdrawal? How can I get back my fund from Epik.com? Thanks for your suggestion.

 

[Derek Peterson]

Where is my domain? I'm gonna need that 10 USDC back.

I predict when this is all over Brian Royce and Rob Monster will do a crypto exchange and alt-coin start-up together based in Thailand called Monster Bucks. Well, either that or some serious jail time. Hopefully, the later.

 

[Igor Gabrielan]

In my experience, complaining to ICANN would put it "on the record", but not really get you any results. I'd be happy to look at your case and help recover the domain name for you.

Better help catch your companion.

 

[jmcc]

Just had a .TV domain stolen from me at Epik. Although paid for, and attempting many times to get 'support' to react, it would show not being paid.

They (company and those that are in control) are making a lot of enemies with long memories.

Other issues were solved after much effort, but this is the first name removed without cause. Going to file the proper complaint with ICANN.

ICANN will reply that it can do nothing about it because .TV is a ccTLD and ICANN only deals with gTLDs. You would need to complain to the .TV registry directly. The registry for .TV is Godaddy ( https://registry.godaddy/compliance-abuse-monitoring ).

Regards...jmcc

 

[Future Sensors]

ICANN will reply that it can do nothing about it because .TV is a ccTLD and ICANN only deals with gTLDs. You would need to complain to the .TV registry directly. The registry for .TV is Godaddy ( https://registry.godaddy/compliance-abuse-monitoring ).

Thanks. GoDaddy is indeed the registry operator for .TV. The ccTLD manager and Administrative contact are still the Tuvalu government, while GoDaddy is listed as Technical contact.

https://www.iana.org/domains/root/db/tv.html

The URL you mention in your previous posting seems to be for new gtlds under ICANN registry agreement.

I'm still confused where best to make such a complaint.

 

[jmcc]

Thanks. GoDaddy is indeed the registry operator for .TV. The ccTLD manager and Administrative contact are still the Tuvalu government, while GoDaddy is listed as Technical contact.

https://www.iana.org/domains/root/db/tv.html

The URL you mention in your previous posting seems to be for new gtlds under ICANN registry agreement.

I'm still confused where best to make such a complaint.

Contacting Godaddy directly may be the best option as it effectively runs the .TV ccTLD. If they cannot help then they will know who can. Godaddy also provides registry services for the .US ccTLD. Some registries outsource their operations to companies like Goaddy. They take care of the operation of the ccTLD and deal with registrars.

Regards...jmcc

 

[jberryhill]

As noted above, ICANN is not going to be interested in a .tv registry compliance issue.

Try:

[email protected]

[email protected]

You will want to be clear that you are complaining to the registry operator concerning the failure of a registrar to renew your .tv domain name under the relevant terms of service; and that you have contacted the registrar for assistance and they are not answering you. It is highly likely there are people within GoDaddy who are perfectly well aware that Epik appears to be having issues (obviously, because they can see what is happening with Epik .tv names across the board, as well as Epik's management of its account).

 

[Igor Gabrielan]

How tired of all this endless bureaucracy, allowing scammers to stay afloat for a whole year. Where are the good old days, when everything was decided by the ability to handle a tomahawk?

 

[Future Sensors]

Contacting Godaddy directly may be the best option as it effectively runs the .TV ccTLD. If they cannot help then they will know who can. Godaddy also provides registry services for the .US ccTLD. Some registries outsource their operations to companies like Goaddy. They take care of the operation of the ccTLD and deal with registrars.

Thanks. I also found this .TV contact form at GoDaddy Registry Services Team, which appears to be the way to get in touch with them:

https://turnon.tv/contact

 

[jberryhill]

In response to the Royce motion to dismiss, it appears that Adkisson has filed an amended complaint:

https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.wawd.320599/gov.uscourts.wawd.320599.12.0.pdf

Perhaps someone with more spare time could compare it to the previous complaint to see if it was amended to address any issues raised in the Royce motion to dismiss. If so, then their responsive filing will argue the Royce motion is rendered moot.

If they were planning to get an amended complaint on file, then that may explain why they have not proceeded in default against Rob Monster. So, they'll have to serve this one and restart the clock.

 

[jberryhill]

Ah, here we go... from DNW...

https://domainnamewire.com/2023/05/15/epik-customer-amends-lawsuit-over-worries-of-asset-sale/

 

[Arch]

Brian Royce is also an insult to firefighters, he is not risking his life every day.

 

[bmugford]

Ah, here we go... from DNW...

https://domainnamewire.com/2023/05/15/epik-customer-amends-lawsuit-over-worries-of-asset-sale/

Like I said earlier in this thread, it is kind of strange to become talkative only after being served with a RICO lawsuit including very serious allegations.

I have no doubt that the plaintiff's attorneys have tracked all these tweets from Brian and Epik.

There are several other problematic tweets as well, including multiple referring to Rob and another referring to "Two hold first-lien positions". I am guessing the attorneys will want more information on those as well.

There is no such thing as some "first-lien" position that gives a company the right to scam customers to pay back.

Stating concern about an asset sale. The amended complaint adds a section titled “Defendants Attempt to Sell Epik and Its Assets”. It explains that Epik CEO Brian Royce recently tweeted about negotiating asset sales and that former CEO Rob Monster confirmed to Adkisson on May 12 “that he understood ‘that an asset sale is being finalized'”. The complaint states, “If an asset sale is completed, Epik intends to pay its creditors before repaying the consumers whose funds Defendants misappropriated.”

 

[Derek Peterson]

Brian Royce really should have given me back my 10 USDC.

 

[jberryhill]

The plaintiff has additionally filed a response to Royce’s motion to dismiss, addressing the nonsense that somehow only Monster is liable for the the fraud:

https://domainnamewire.com/wp-content/royce-motion-response.pdf

 

[bmugford]

The plaintiff has additionally filed a response to Royce’s motion to dismiss, addressing the nonsense that somehow only Monster is liable for the the fraud:

https://domainnamewire.com/wp-content/royce-motion-response.pdf

In his Motion, Royce focuses largely on what he terms a “timing issue,” claiming that because he did not become CEO of Epik until after Mr. Adkisson transferred his funds to Epik, Royce cannot be liable. This is chronological sophistry. Royce purposefully omits that as CEO of Epik he personally made several materially false representations to Mr. Adkisson about repaying Mr. Adkisson’s funds—which Epik was purportedly holding in escrow. Royce deliberately misled Mr. Adkisson for months while Defendants embezzled Mr. Adkisson’s funds for purposes other than what Mr. Adkisson had intended. That is illegal. And, as detailed in the Amended Complaint, Royce was not just involved in this tortious conduct, he is in charge of it as the only person fully in control of Epik’s finances.

 

[bmugford]

There are also references to other customers including Kathleen, Domain Empire, as well as references to taking payments for registration / renewals and never actually processing them.

 

[tonyk2000]

The complaint states, “If an asset sale is completed, Epik intends to pay its creditors before repaying the consumers

If so, what we'll see next? Company without assets? Such a company should be subject to dissolution (liquidation, bankruptcy...). Moreover, since we are speaking mostly about LLCs (*limited liability*), the owners may not be personally responsible for the LLC debts. At least this is how the things are supposed to work. The country or state of incorporation, US and WA in this particular case, may have some specific regulations though. In any case, in such a scenario where are the sources to pay masterbucks debts? I do not see how masterbucks users can recover their $$$ then (

we may probably guess that:

1) proceeds from a large domain portfolio sale [earlier this year] were already used to pay the creditors
2) proceeds from a web forum sale were also used to pay the creditors
3) consumers (masterbucks users) were not paid and will never be paid

 

[Future Sensors]

If so, what we'll see next? Company without assets? Such a company should be subject to dissolution (liquidation, bankruptcy...). Moreover, since we are speaking about LLCs (*limited liability*), the owners may not be personally responsible for the LLC debts. At least this is how the things are supposed to work. The country or state of incorporation, US and WA in this particular case, may have some specific regulations though. In any case, in such a scenario where are the sources to pay masterbucks debts? I do not see how masterbucks users can recover their $$$ then (

we may probably guess that:

1) proceeds from a domain portfolio sale [earlier this year] were already used to pay the creditors
2) proceeds from a web forum sale were also used to pay the creditors
3) consumers (masterbucks users) were not paid and will never be paid

Both the LLC, the two Inc's and two individuals are named in the document. As for the Inc's, the individual board members are indemnified from personal liability provided they meet a number of conditions. As far as I can estimate, they do not comply and that protection may lapse.

---

Does incorporation protect me from personal liability?​

Yes, incorporating your business does provide a layer of protection from personal liability. However, it is important to keep in mind that there are times when that protection does not insulate you completely. This is referred to as piercing the corporate veil. In this part one of our two-part segment, the broad duties and protection requirements for insulation are discussed.

Protection requirements:

There are primarily two requirements that must be followed in order to maintain corporate protection:

1) The Rule of the Prudent Person. Board members are trusted individuals and this protection is provided as it is assumed that the board member will act reasonably for the best interest of the business. The prudent person rule essentially states that board members are protected from personal liability as long as they act “as a reasonably prudent person under the same or similar conditions”. So basically, if your peers would think you acted contrary to your duty, then the protection may not be available.

2) Duty of Loyalty. As a board member, conflicts of interest should be avoided. Therefore, the protection otherwise provided may not be there if actions or decisions are made to benefit yourself instead of the business. Commonly, this occurs when a board member votes in favor of an action to provide himself or his family with financial gain or support a business venture he owns. Keep in mind, while financial gain is a typical motive, it is not required to breach the duty of loyalty.

Source: https://bgswlaw.com/incorporation-personal-liability-protection/

 

[Future Sensors]

As for the LLC:

Who is Liable in an LLC: Everything You Need to Know​

[..]

Some of these exceptions include the following:

• If the member injures someone
• If the member personally guarantees a bank loan for the LLC
• If the member fails to pay taxes on his or her portion of the business profits
• If the member acts fraudulently, illegally, or recklessly and such action(s) harms the business or someone else
• If the member treats the LLC as an extension of him or herself

Undoubtedly, if a member acts illegally or fraudulently, then he or she will be held personally liable. This doesn’t mean that all members will be liable, only those who acted illegally. Furthermore, an example of a member acting recklessly includes a member obtaining several business loans with the knowledge that the business will not be able to repay such loans. Alternatively, it could also include the member obtaining business loans and then using such funds for personal use. Such action would also constitute illegal and fraudulent activity, along with treating the LLC as an extension of oneself. Therefore, some of the above circumstances can overlap.

Some other examples of a member treating the LLC as an extension of oneself includes co-mingling personal and business assets, or otherwise acting as though he or she has complete and utter control over the LLC as though it is nothing more than an alter ego of the member.

[..]

Source: https://www.upcounsel.com/who-is-liable-in-an-llc

 

[bmugford]

If so, what we'll see next? Company without assets? Such a company should be subject to dissolution (liquidation, bankruptcy...). Moreover, since we are speaking mostly about LLCs (*limited liability*), the owners may not be personally responsible for the LLC debts. At least this is how the things are supposed to work. The country or state of incorporation, US and WA in this particular case, may have some specific regulations though. In any case, in such a scenario where are the sources to pay masterbucks debts? I do not see how masterbucks users can recover their $$$ then (

we may probably guess that:

1) proceeds from a large domain portfolio sale [earlier this year] were already used to pay the creditors
2) proceeds from a web forum sale were also used to pay the creditors
3) consumers (masterbucks users) were not paid and will never be paid

I am going to go out on a limb here and say that zero states have laws that would offer corporate protection when it comes to abuse such as commingling escrow funds, misappropriation, embezzlement, fraud, etc.

This is especially true for the executives involved.

There is an implied good faith required for those protections. You can't just form a company for $100 and commence the scamming.

The only reason that Epik has been able to continue this scam for so long is because they are a small player, in a small field. There is no real regulatory authority like in other fields. ICANN has proven to be completely impotent.

If this happened in another field, the outcome would likely be far different.

If I wired $327,000 to a title company to buy a house, and they just disappeared with my money for a year...no house, no refund, they would likely lose their license and end up with criminal charges.

In that situation there is more of a set process to deal with this.

If $327,000 was wired to my lawyer for a settlement, and they disappeared with my money and spent it on something else and stuck me with an IOU for a year...again that is likely going to end up in a loss of license and criminal charges.

In those type of fields that type of abuse is taken seriously and properly regulated.

Brad

 

[jacobs]

Some Sunday lulz. Rob Monster almost certainly reported ar15 dot com domain in the first place. That was same tactic gab used to deplatform hundreds or right wing sites and "influencers" for the ol', "we'll help you" girft. Problem, reaction, solution. Great way to set the hook of a grift.

You suck Rob Monster and you deserve everything you get!!! This is far from over for you and yours. Remember by promise to you in 2019.

Show attachment 237600

Gab no longer uses Epik for its registration of Gab(dot)com ... They switched to Cloudflare. Another customer lost... #BeEpik

 

[jacobs]

Infowars on the other hand, still uses Epik ... both are disgraces and can sink in the holes they put themselves in. They (Epik and Infowars) disdain their industries and audiences. I'm sick of that. I want pure investigative journalism and I want a Registrar that is going to do their job, perform their business duties, act unbiased, and not get political. I left GoDaddy for that reason (and others). Shame on Rob for what he has done.

 

[Derek Peterson]

Gab no longer uses Epik for its registration of Gab(dot)com ... They switched to Cloudflare. Another customer lost... #BeEpik

LOL. That's gotta sting. Torba knows what Monster is because he is shorter, fatter, dumber version. Here's in an article we did on Gab recently. https://providencepost.com/torba-grift-of-gab/

Torba/gab ran a pedo and lolicon honeytrap to set up young men in stings to turn them into servants as well.

Monster had to be political, that was the whole grift and he had no real products. Just like gab. Lied about all his products. Monster never cared about any of those people or he wouldn't have lied and later betrayed all of them with his grift. It still amazes me that he was given $16 Million and still didn't try to clean up his lies and go straight. It is some kind of weird compulsion to be criminal when there is no need and strange desire to get caught.

Sadly, Monster is incapable of shame so pain it will be. Lord willing, lots of it.

 

[alcy]

Brian Royce really should have given me back my 10 USDC.

hmm do they payout usdc... I didnt know

 

[Mister Funsky]

ICANN will reply that it can do nothing about it because .TV is a ccTLD and ICANN only deals with gTLDs. You would need to complain to the .TV registry directly. The registry for .TV is Godaddy ( https://registry.godaddy/compliance-abuse-monitoring ).

Regards...jmcc

Thank you for giving me the information.

I had to head out after I posted and thought I might have been incorrect regarding ICANN. It has been an especially hard month for me personally so I am woefully behind on reading this thread...I will soon start a thread about my experiences with Epik (will likely include info going back to the digit**town days).