Author Archives: FLSecurities
Wells Fargo Agrees to $6.5 Million Settlement With SEC
Wells Fargo Brokerage Services, LLC n/k/a Wells Fargo Securities, LLC (“Wells Fargo”) and Shawn McMurty of Minnesota, the former vice-president of its Institutional Brokerage and Sales Division, have agreed to settle charges by the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) relating to the sales of certain asset-backed commercial paper investments to certain institutional customers, including… Read More »
Lake Worth Financial Planner Accused of Defrauding Investors
Michael Hardman of Lake Worth, Florida was arrested last week for allegedly defrauding Palm Beach County investors out of more than $1 million. According to police, Hardman is facing one count of organizing a scheme to defraud and multiple counts of grand theft. Police records reflect that Hardman used his position as a tax… Read More »
Bi-Partisan Bill Aims to Stop Scammers Who Target Veterans
According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (“VA”), Palm Beach County, Florida is home to more than 112,000 veterans – many of which are potential victims of scammers who prey on elderly and disable veterans. U.S. Representatives Tom Rooney (R-FL), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Kurt Schrader (D-OR), and Ron Barber (D-AZ) aim to discourage… Read More »
Bank of America Settles With Court-Appointed Trustee for Fraudster Nevin Shapiro’s Former Company
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Laurel Isicoff has approved a $5.9 million settlement between the court-appointed trustee for Capitol Investments USA, Inc. (“Capitol”), the company formerly run by jailed Ponzi schemer Nevin Shapiro, and Bank of America Corp. Shapiro and Capitol maintained bank accounts at Bank of America. Bank of America agreed to pay $5.9 million… Read More »
Defense Subcontractor Settles Whistleblower Case
An Alabama-based subcontractor for the U.S. Department of Defense, Robbins, LLC, has settled a False Claims Act retaliation lawsuit brought by its former employee James Brown of Temple, Georgia. According to Brown’s lawsuit, Robbins used an expired ingredient, Elastomag 170, when it made a rubber compound used in making sonar nose cones for U.S…. Read More »
SEC Mulls Civil Charges Against the City of Miami
According to a July 23rd letter from Andre Zamorano, Senior Counsel in the Miami Regional Office of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), SEC investigators intend to recommend that the SEC bring civil charges against the City of Miami for alleged violations of the Securities Acts of 1933 and the Exchange Act of… Read More »
Arbitrators Award Investor $1.6 Million in Damages
A three-member Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) arbitration panel has issued a $1.6 million Award in favor of customer, John Sisk, against JHS Capital Advisors, Inc., Pointe Capital, Inc. and broker Enver R. Alijaj. The Award stems from a FINRA claim filed by Sisk in New York in February 2011. Sisk alleged that his… Read More »
Broker Prevails on Defamation Claims Against Morgan Keegan
Former Morgan Keegan broker Alejandro Rotundo was awarded $500,000 by a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) arbitration panel on his counterclaim for defamation against his former firm Morgan Keegan. Rotundo was a broker in Morgan Keegan’s Coral Gables branch office from December 2006 until he was terminated in September 2010. The Statement of Claim… Read More »
Free Webinar on How to Avoid Fraud in Self-Directed IRA Accounts
The North American Securities Administrators Association (“NASAA”) and Retirement Industry Trust Association (“RITA”) are jointly presenting a free webinar for the public on July 18 at 2 p.m. Eastern. The purpose of the webinar is to raise public awareness about how to identify fraud in connection with investing in self-directed IRA accounts. Founded in… Read More »
Florida Office of Financial Regulation Sues Prime Capital Services, Inc. and Asset & Financial Planning, Ltd.
The Florida Attorney General has initiated a lawsuit on behalf of the Florida Office of Financial Regulation (“FLOFR”) against brokerage firm Prime Capital Services, Inc., headquartered in Poughkeepsie, New York, and Florida-based investment adviser, Asset & Financial Planning, Ltd. Several brokers and investment advisers associated with both firms, Scott Aabel, Antonio Gomes and Richard… Read More »