Antelope Valley woman seeks release from fraud charges

An Antelope Valley woman was expected this week to ask a judge in downtown Los Angeles to modify her conditions of release on federal charges alleging she obtained more than $13.5 million from at least 1,000 investors for her beverage company, the lion’s share of which she spent at casinos, on luxury items and cars, and renting a house.
Lupe L. Rose, 54, of Palmdale, is charged with 38 counts of securities fraud and one count of making false statements to federal investigators, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Rose pleaded not guilty at her arraignment in February in Los Angeles federal court and a judge ordered her set free on $20,000 bond. Trial is set for Sept. 17.
Beginning in April, Rose requested that the government agree to a modification of her conditions of release to allow her to travel throughout California and Nevada for business purposes. In response, prosecutors requested information about the business and supporting documentation.
However, according to court papers, Rose has failed to explain the precise nature of her business and why she needs to travel to Las Vegas –and stay at a casino –to accomplish her purported deal.
According to the indictment, Rose in 2009 founded She Beverage Co. Inc., a Lancaster-based beverage manufacturer of which she was the company’s president, CEO and chairman of its board of directors. Rose promoted She Beverage as a woman-owned beverage manufacturer that marketed–primarily to female consumers–and sold beer, wine, bottled water and other products purportedly designed specifically to cater to women’s needs.
Court papers show that from 2017 to December 2020, Rose raised investments in She Beverage amounting to more than $13.5 million from more than 1,000 investors nationwide. Specifically, she caused the company to offer and sell its shares through an offering memorandum, offering shares in the company at a price of $2.50 per share. Rose also hosted in-person meetings for current and prospective investors, some of which were live-streamed to out-of-town investors, the indictment alleges.
Prosecutors allege that even though Rose marketed She Beverage as a successful company, in fact, she used the vast majority of the $13.5 million she raised from investors personally to enrich herself, her family and friends. She also used victim investor money to “purchase” shell companies to give the false appearance that She Beverage was expanding, according to the indictment.
Contrary to Rose’s written promises to spend 30% of money raised from investors on inventory, she allegedly spent only 2.5% of investors’ money on inventory from 2015 to 2021.