Selling Away

Former UBS Broker Robert Turner in Waco, Texas May Have Stolen Over $17M From Customers

Published on: May 24, 2022 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Ex-UBS Financial Services Broker Robert Turner Investigated For Stealing Clients’ Money

Shepherd Smith Edwards and Kantas (SSEK Law Firm at investorlawyers.com) is looking into claims of losses involving former UBS Financial Services broker Robert Earl Turner. Although no longer a registered broker or investment advisor, Turner worked in the industry for 31 years. He spent 25 years at UBS until October 2021. He is accused of stealing money from customers in a scam that allegedly lasted for over two decades.

In late 2021, Turner and his wife joined Stifel, Nicolaus, & Co. She is still with that firm, although Robert left after just several months in early 2022. While at UBS Financial Services, they reportedly oversaw $900M in customer assets and made about $3M in yearly revenue.

Barred Wells Fargo Broker Scott Reed Accused of Selling Investments Without Firm’s Permission

Published on: January 25, 2022 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

A former customer of Scott Reed, an ex-Wells Fargo Clearing Services broker, has filed a FINRA arbitration claim. The investor claims Reed made them invest more than $2M in unapproved investments. This resulted in the broker making hundreds of thousands of dollars in undisclosed commissions.

FINRA barred Scott Reed in February 2021 for allegedly taking part in $3.5M of private securities transactions. These transactions were made without notifying or getting the approval of his member firm first. This practice is known as selling away.

The self-regulatory organization (SRO) said that Reed solicited individuals to invest in securities from a software and development company. Not only did he facilitate these sales, but he also personally invested $200K in the company.

Suspended Delta Securities Broker Sean Casterline Allegedly Sold Away to Customers

Published on: January 24, 2022 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Florida Financial Advisor Sold Tuscan Gardens Growth and Income Fund Securities

Did you lose money while working with Delta Securities Company registered representative, Sean Donovan Casterline? If so, you may have grounds for pursuing damages. The longtime Florida financial advisor was suspended by FINRA in December 2021.

In FINRA’s action, the self-regulatory organization (SRO) accused Casterline of taking part in unauthorized private securities transactions through his alleged soliciting of about $1.5M in securities to 20 investors.

Ex-SagePoint Financial Broker Grant Birkley Faces $2.3M of Investor Fraud Claims

Published on: August 20, 2021 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Barred SagePoint Financial Broker Accused of Selling Away

Grant Christopher Birkley, an ex-SagePoint Financial stockbroker, is named in two pending customer disputes. He is accused of selling investment products that were not approved by his firm.

SagePoint Financial fired him last August after he admitted to making referrals to an external manager without the broker-dealer’s approval. In June, FINRA barred Birkley indefinitely after he declined to provide documents and information related to the self-regulatory authority’s probe into his termination by SagePoint.

Former Principal Securities Broker John Krohn Involved in $39M in Investor Fraud Claims

Published on: April 7, 2021 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

FINRA Suspended Ex-Iowa Stockbroker in 2018 For Selling Away

John Michael Krohn, a former Iowa broker with Principal Securities, is named in three customer disputes in which the claimants are collectively pursuing over $39.2M in damages for losses they sustained while working with him.

The investors contend that Krohn engaged in selling away, which involves offering them investments that his then-brokerage firm of record never approved. They are pursuing damages against Principal Securities, where Krohn was a registered representative for 20 years.

Customers Accuse Ex-Fortune Financial Services Broker Jonathan Freeze of Alternative Investment Fraud

Published on: October 13, 2020 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

Former Canonsburg, Pennsylvania Stockbroker Faces Selling Away Allegations

Three years after the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) barred him, Jonathan Douglas Freeze remains the subject of eight pending customer disputes. Most of these investor claims accuse him of selling away and investing customers’ funds in Alternative Investment Holdings, a North Carolina real estate and investment holdings company, without Fortune Financial Services’ authorization.

Freeze worked 21 years in the industry. He also previously was a broker for Summit Brokerage Services, LPL Financial (LPLA), Lincoln Financial Advisors, and The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company.

FINRA Bars Ex-Ameritas Broker Following Selling Away Allegations

Published on: June 6, 2019 | by Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas, LLP

James Anderson, an ex-Ameritas Investment Corp. adviser, is now barred by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) after he failed to participate in a probe into allegations that he had taken part in selling away. Ameritas fired Anderson earlier this year after the brokerage firm’s own investigation found that he had engaged in selling promissory notes and indexed annuities that it had not approved.

Anderson was at Ameritas for 14 years. In April, a claimant filed a FINRA arbitration case accusing of making unsuitable recommendations by pushing promissory notes. The allegations are related to the selling away charges against him. The claimant is asking for $400K in damages.

Selling Away