Water Machine Fraud! $275 MILLION SCAM! Machines NEVER EXISTED!

SEC v. Ryan R. Wear, Water Station Management LLC, Creative Technologies, Inc., et al. — U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Litigation Release No. 26375, dated August 15, 2025.

The SEC charged Ryan Wear and his companies with operating two Ponzi-like schemes that defrauded over 250 investors out of $275 million by selling fake water machines. Additionally, portfolio manager Jordan Chirico was charged for breaching his fiduciary duty by investing his client in the scheme despite undisclosed conflicts and awareness of red flags.

In Plain English

Imagine someone selling you a special lemonade stand that they promised would make you lots of money. They told you they would set it up and run it for you. But, they actually didn't have many lemonade stands, and they used the money from new people to pay off earlier people, like a game of musical chairs with money. They also spent some of the money on themselves. Then, someone who was supposed to help manage money for others put their client's money into this fake lemonade stand business without telling them about a personal stake or ignoring warning signs.

Disclaimer: all facts are drawn from the SEC's own filings; the claims described are allegations unless and until a court rules or the parties settle, and some cases end in dismissal.

How the Alleged Scheme Worked

1. Selling the Dream of Vending Machines From September 2016 through September 2023, Ryan Wear and his companies, Creative Technologies and Water Station Management, allegedly sold investment contracts to primarily retail investors, including veterans. They claimed investors would purchase water machines, documented in purchase orders, which Water Station would then service.
2. Promising High Returns Investors were lured by promises of lucrative annual returns, typically between 12% and 20%. These returns were purportedly generated from the vending revenues of the water machines placed in various retail locations by Water Station.
3. The Non-Existent Machines In reality, the SEC alleges that most of the over 15,000 water machines purportedly sold to investors either did not exist or had already been pledged to other investors. This formed the basis of the first, or 'Retail Scheme'.
4. A Second Scheme for Institutions From April 2022 to February 2024, Wear's entities allegedly raised over $110 million from institutional investors by issuing Water Station notes. These notes were purportedly secured by water machines, but again, most of these machines did not exist or were not owned by Water Station.
5. Misappropriating Funds The defendants allegedly misappropriated over $60 million of investor funds. This money was used to make Ponzi-like payments to earlier investors and to fund Wear’s other business ventures, including Refreshing USA, LLC and Ideal Property Investments LLC.
6. Breach of Fiduciary Duty Separately, portfolio manager Jordan Chirico allegedly violated his fiduciary duty to a private fund client. He directed the fund to purchase Water Station notes without disclosing his significant personal investment in the business.
7. Ignoring Red Flags Chirico also allegedly failed to act in his client's best interest by increasing investments in the notes, despite red flags indicating that some of the purported water machine collateral might have been fabricated.

The Enforcement Action

On August 14, 2025, the SEC filed complaints in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Ryan Wear, Water Station Management LLC, and Creative Technologies, Inc. for operating two Ponzi-like schemes that raised over $275 million from more than 250 investors. The SEC also charged portfolio manager Jordan Chirico for violating his fiduciary duty. The SEC seeks injunctive relief, civil penalties, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, and an officer and director bar against Wear. The complaint against Chirico seeks injunctive relief, civil penalties, and disgorgement. In a parallel action, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York announced criminal charges against Wear and Chirico.

Named in this action: Ryan R. Wear, Water Station Management LLC, Creative Technologies, Inc., Jordan Chirico, Refreshing USA, LLC, Ideal Property Investments LLC.

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