Broker Fraud

Aegis Capital Broker Accused by Investors of Negligence, Unsuitable Investments and Unauthorized Trading

Published on: July 29, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Former National Securities Stockbroker Named in Over 12 Customer Disputes

Thomas Edison Kelly, Jr., an Aegis Capital broker, has been the subject of a number of customer complaints between 2013 and 2020, three of which are still pending.

Prior to working for Aegis Capital in 2018, Kelly was a National Securities broker for 10 years. Before that, he was with First Republic Group from 1998 to 2008. First Republic was expelled by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) in 2019. According to a 2017 Reuters report analyzing FINRA data, National Securities is one of 48 firms that hire brokers with red flags on their record.

Northwestern Mutual Investment Services Fined $350K for Inadequate Supervision of Ex-Broker Sampson Pearson

Published on: July 16, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Former Financial Representative Is Facing Criminal Trial for Annuity Fraud

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has fined Northwestern Mutual Investment Services $350K for failing to properly supervise former stockbroker, Sampson Pearson, which enabled him to defraud customers of $570K. Northwestern Mutual Investment Services is the brokerage arm of Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co.

Pearson, who was barred by the self-regulatory organization (SRO) in 2017, is charged in federal court with aggravated identity theft, mail fraud, and filing false tax returns. According to his BrokerCheck record, he is named in 13 disclosures, including 11 customer disputes.

Ex-Merrill Lynch Brokers Charles Kenahan & Dermod Cavanaugh Investigated for Alleged Churning After Over $200M in Losses

Published on: July 15, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Ex-New Hampshire Governor is Suing For Damages

The New Hampshire Bureau of Securities Regulation is looking into allegations brought by the state’s former governor, Craig Benson, who is accusing ex-Merrill Lynch brokers Dermod Cavanaugh and Charles Kenahan of churning his account and causing over $50M in damages that with market adjustments, he claims, is now over $100M. Benson filed a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration claim against the broker-dealer and the two men.

Merrill Lynch is a Bank of America (BAC) subsidiary. Churning is when a broker makes excessive trades in a customer’s account in order to earn commissions.

Customers Blame Newbridge Securities Broker Kerri Jamison For Investment Losses

Published on: July 10, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Dually Registered Rep. Faces Multiple FINRA Arbitration Claims by Investors

Kerri Suzanne Jamison, a Newbridge Securities Corp. and Newbridge Financial Services Group stockbroker, is currently the subject of pending complaints by customers who claim they lost money because of investment recommendations she made.

Jamison, who has worked under the names Kerri Lasegue and Kerri Romero, is one of several of the firm’s registered representatives to become the subject of stockbroker fraud claims in recent years. According to her BrokerCheck record, Jamison has been named in four customer disputes. One was settled, and three, which were filed this year, are still pending:

Investors Lose Money After Brokers Recommend FS KKR Capital Corp II Fund

Published on: July 3, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Business Development Company May Have Been Unsuitable For Some Investors

If you are an investor who suffered losses after your stockbroker recommended the Franklin Square KKR Capital II Fund (FSKR), also known as FS KKR Capital Corp II, you may have grounds for pursuing a broker fraud claim for damages.

This business development company (BDC), which is a merger of four non-traded BDCs, reportedly was unsuitably recommended to a number of customers and/or the risks were never fully disclosed to them.

$200K Investor Claim Against Arni Diamond, Of The Diamond Group, Alleges Unsuitable Alternative Investment Recommendations

Published on: June 18, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Diamond and Other Kalos Capital Brokers Are Accused of Broker Fraud

Arni Diamond, who is now a registered representative with Dempsey Lord Smith, is currently the subject of a pending $200K broker fraud claim accusing him of making unsuitable alternative investment recommendations reportedly while he was a Kalos Capital broker.

Diamond is one of a number of financial representatives currently or formerly associated with Kalos who has been accused of marketing securities products to investors even when they were inappropriate for them.

Retiree Sues Kovack Securities and Its Broker Susan Penney Over Investment Losses

Published on: June 8, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Elderly Investor Alleges Unsuitable Investment Recommendations Caused REIT Losses

An Oklahoma retiree is seeking up to $500K in damages for investment losses she suffered while working with Kovack Securities broker, Susan Penney.

The claimant contends that Penney and the broker-dealer misled her and made unsuitable recommendations when they persuaded her to invest a huge portion of her portfolio in non-public Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and other risky investments that an inexperienced investor like her should never have been involved in.

Barred Wells Fargo Broker Named in Unsuitable Investment Fraud Case Recently Settled for $995K

Published on: June 3, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Fired Wells Fargo Representative is Barred by FINRA

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) announced this month that it is barring former Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network broker, Leonard Charles Kinsman, from the industry.

The ban comes after Kinsman refused to testify in the self-regulatory organization’s (SRO’s) probe into his firing by Wells Fargo (WFC) for allegedly “unprofessional conduct.” Kinsman was named last year in an investor fraud claim accusing him of making unsuitable investment recommendations and forging and falsifying business records. That customer dispute has now been settled for $995K.

Massachusetts Sues GPB Capital Holdings for Defrauding Investors of Over $14M

Published on: June 2, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

State Securities Regulator Claims GPB Capital Defrauded 180 Local Investors

Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, William Galvin, has filed a civil fraud lawsuit against GPB Capital Holdings accusing it of defrauding 180 local investors who purchased more than $14M of private placements in five of the GPB funds.

The alternative asset firm, which acquires waste management operations and auto dealerships, has been accused of operating a more than $1.5B Ponzi scam.

Investor Sues Kestra Investment Services For IRA Losses Involving Barred Broker James Daughtry

Published on: May 29, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Alabama Retiree Lost Retirement Savings To Broker Fraud and Negligence

An investor in Alabama has filed a Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration complaint against Kestra Investment Services, Inc. for retirement losses that she suffered while working with the now-former broker, James Daughtry.

The firm fired Daughtry earlier this year around the same time that FINRA barred him indefinitely after he refused to testify in the self-regulatory (SRO)’s probe into allegations that he engaged in potentially fraudulent and unauthorized transactions in customers’ accounts.