Articles Tagged with investment fraud attorney

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The law offices of Gana Weinstein LLP are currently investigating claims that advisor Kieth Baron (Baron) has been accused by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) of engaging in undisclosed outside business activities (OBAs) and private securities transactions.  According to records kept by FINRA, Baron was last employed by Equity Services, Inc. (Equity Services) through January 2022.  According to BrokerCheck, Baron has 11 disclosures on his record including two regulatory actions, two financial disclosures, one employment termination, and six customer complaints.  If you have been a victim of Kieth’s alleged misconduct our firm may be able to assist you in recovering funds.

According to FINRA, Baron was named in a FINRA complaint alleging that he made material misrepresentations to investors in connection with his recommendation of a Company stock. The FINRA complaint alleges Baron failed to disclose to the couple that he was a consultant for the Company. FINRA is also claiming that Baron later made additional material false statements to an investor in connection with a buyback of the couple’s shares of the Company.

The complaint also alleges that Baron had an ongoing business relationship with Company A. Baron expected to receive compensation and received $284,890 in compensation from Company A. FINRA found Baron failed to provide prior written notice to his member firm concerning his business relationship with Company A. The complaint further alleges that Baron participated in private securities transactions by recommending investors purchase 4,348,000 shares of Company A’s common stock for $359,806.  According to FINRA, Baron failed to provide written notice to his firm of his role in the sale of Company A’s common stock prior to participating in the sale.

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shutterstock_152933045-300x200The law offices of Gana Weinstein LLP are currently investigating claims that advisor Byron Treat (Treat) has been accused by a securities regulator of failing to supervise recommendations of certain illiquid investments. Treat was sanctioned by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) concerning whether Treat reasonably supervised the sale of certain illiquid investment.  According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Treat was employed by Great Nation Investment Corporation (Great Nation) at the time of the activity. If you have been a victim of Treat’s alleged misconduct, our firm may be able to assist you in recovering funds.

In January 2021, FINRA brought a regulatory action and found that Treat consented to sanctions and findings that he failed to provide documents and information requested by FINRA in connection with an investigation into whether Treat reasonably supervised the sale of certain illiquid investments while at Great Nation.

In February 2021 Great Nation terminated Treat alleging that he failed to supervise the sale of certain church bonds and failed to provide information related to the investigation.

In May 2013, Treat consented to a fine of $5,000 for failing to establish, maintain, and enforce an adequate supervisory system regarding the offering of certain investments at Great Nation.

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shutterstock_189276023-300x198The law offices of Gana Weinstein LLP are currently investigating claims that advisor Tyler Dean Delahunt (“Delahunt”) has been accused by a securities regulator of engaging in unapproved business activities among other allegations. Delahunt was sanctioned by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) concerning his private securities and undisclosed outside business activity conduct.  According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Reed was employed by Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. (“Merrill Lynch”) at the time of the activity. If you have been a victim of Delahunt’s alleged misconduct our firm may be able to assist you in recovering funds.

In January 2021, FINRA brought a regulatory action and found that Delahunt consented to sanctions and findings that he failed to provide documents and information requested by FINRA in connection with its investigation into Delahunt’s termination. Delahunt’s former firm, Merrill Lynch filed a Form U5 disclosing his termination for alleged misconduct involving the solicitation of clients in an outside investment and participating in financial arrangements with clients. Continue Reading

shutterstock_20354401-300x200The attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating BrokerCheck records reports that financial advisor Thomas S. Martin (Martin), currently employed by Brighton Securities Corp. (Brighton Securities) has been subject to at least two  customer complaints during the course of his career.  According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Mr. Martin’s customer complaints alleges that Mr. Martin recommended unsuitable investments in various investments securities, among other allegations of misconduct relating to the handling of their accounts.

In January 2020, Mr. Martin was the subject of a regulatory action initiated by FINRA. Mr. Martin consented to the findings and sanctions, of $5,000 in civil and administrative penalties. Mr. Martin neither admitted or denied the findings. Mr. Martin allegedly exercised discretion in customers’ accounts, without prior written authorization from the customers. Additionally, Mr. Martin received written reprimands from his firm, for engaging in such conduct.

In August 2017, a customer complained that Mr. Martin violated the securities laws by alleging that Mr. Martin engaged in unauthorized trading between February 2017 and July 2017.  The claim settled in the amount of $8,252.75.

In August 2011, a customer complained that Mr. Martin violated the securities laws by alleging that Mr. Martin engaged in unsuitable investment advice, with regards to the customer’s IRA. Client claimed she deposited money into her IRA with instructions to be placed in the safest account.  The IRA is alleged to have lost approximately $7,000, resulting in this customer dispute. The claim settled in the amount of $22,407.33.

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shutterstock_102217105-300x200The attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating BrokerCheck records reports that financial advisor Siddharth Reddy (Reddy), recently employed by Paulson Investment Company LLC (Paulson Investment Company) has been subject to at least three  customer complaints during the course of his career.  According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Mr. Reddy’s customer complaints alleges that Mr. Reddy recommended unsuitable investments in various investments, among other allegations of misconduct relating to the handling of their accounts. Mr. Reddy is no longer registered as a broker.

In September 2013, a customer complained that Mr. Reddy violated the securities laws by alleging that Mr. Reddy engaged in unsuitable investment advice. The claim settled in the amount of $200,000.

In September 2013, a customer complained that Mr. Reddy violated the securities laws by alleging that Mr. Reddy engaged in unsuitable investment advice, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, and material misrepresentations.  The claim settled in the amount of $55,000.

In September 2012, a customer complained that Mr. Reddy violated the securities laws by alleging that Mr. Reddy engaged in unsuitable investment advice, breach of fiduciary duty, breach of contract, and material misrepresentations. The claim settled in the amount of $150,000.

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shutterstock_180341738-200x300Advisor Gregory Williams (Williams), formerly employed by brokerage firm Forta Financial Group, Inc. (Forta Financial) has been subject to at least nine customer complaints.  According to a BrokerCheck report several of the customer complaints concern alternative investments such as direct participation products (DPPs) like business development companies (BDCs), non-traded real estate investment trusts (REITs), oil & gas programs, annuities, and private placements.  The attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP have represented hundreds of investors who suffered losses caused by these types of high risk, low reward products.

In April 2021 a customer complained that Williams violated the securities laws by alleging that Williams committed the following violations: breach of fiduciary duty, negligence and violation of state and federal securities laws between November 2013 and February 2021.  The claim involves alternative investments and alleges $30,000 in damages and is currently pending.

In October 2020 a customer complained that Williams violated the securities laws by alleging that Williams committed the following violations: breach of fiduciary duty, negligence and violation of state and federal securities laws between November 2014 and September 2020.  The claim involves alternative investments and alleges $250,000 in damages and is currently pending.

In October 2020 a customer complained that Williams violated the securities laws by alleging that Williams committed the following violations: breach of fiduciary duty, negligence and violation of state and federal securities laws likely between March 2012 and September 2020.  The claim involves alternative investments and alleges $99,000 in damages and is currently pending.

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shutterstock_113872627-300x300The attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating BrokerCheck records reports that Seth Stewart, currently employed by Brookstone Financial and formerly employed by Center Street Securities, Inc. (Center Street), has been subject to at least two customer complaints during his career. According to records kept by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Stewart’s customer complaints allege that Stewart recommended unsuitable investments in illiquid alternative investments – a high risk investment category.

In February 2020, a customer complained that Stewart violated the securities laws by alleging that Stewart engaged in unsuitable investment advice. The claim alleges $200,000 in damages and is currently pending.

In December 2019, a customer complained that Stewart violated the securities laws by alleging that Stewart was unaware that certain investments he made were illiquid. The claim alleges $100,000 in damages and is currently pending.

DDPs include products such as non-traded REITs, oil and gas offerings, equipment leasing products, and other alternative investments.  These alternative investments virtually never profit investors and are almost always unsuitable for investors because of their high fee and cost structure.  Brokers selling these products are paid additional commission in order to hype these inferior quality investments providing a perverse incentives to create an artificial market for the investments.

Several studies have confirmed that Non-traded REITs underperform publicly traded REITs with some showing that Non-Traded REITs cannot even beat safe benchmarks, like U.S. treasury bonds.  Brokers selling these products must disclose to the investor that non-traded REITs provide lower investment returns than treasuries while being high risk and illiquid – but almost never do.  Because investors are not compensated with additional return in exchange for higher risk and illiquidity, these kinds of alternative investment products are rarely, if ever, appropriate for investors.

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shutterstock_29356093-300x214The attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating BrokerCheck records reports that broker Kevin Meadows (Meadows), most recently associated with IBN Financial Services, Inc. (IBN Financial Services) has been subject to at least five  customer complaints and two regulatory actions during the course of his career. Meadows has been recently barred by FINRA from acting as a broker. According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Meadows’s customer complaints alleges that Meadows recommended unsuitable investments in various investments among other allegations of misconduct relating to the handling of their accounts, including churning customer accounts.

In April 2020, a customer complained that Meadows violated the securities laws by alleging that Meadows recommended unsuitable investments and failed to repay a loan. Further, the claim alleged that Meadows engaged in failure to supervise, excessive trading, and breach of fiduciary duty. The damage amount requested was $168,000. The claim settled in the amount of $35,000.

In March 2006, a customer complained that Meadows violated the securities laws by alleging that Meadows engaged in unauthorized trading and use of margin in customer accounts. The damage amount requested was $135,481.71. The matter was settled in a voluntary mediation, without going through arbitration/litigation. The claim settled in the amount of $50,000.

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shutterstock_176283941-300x200The attorneys at Gana Weinstein LLP are investigating BrokerCheck records reports that advisor John Howard (Howard), currently employed by Raymond James & Associates, Inc. (Raymond James) has been subject to at least three customer complaints during the course of his career.  According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Howard’s customer complaints alleges that Howard recommended unsuitable investments in various investments including allegations involving unauthorized trading among other allegations of misconduct relating to the handling of their accounts.

In September 2019, a customer complained that Howard violated the securities laws by alleging that Howard engaged in breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, breach of contract, and violated several other securities laws. The claim settled in the amount of $97,500.

In March 2008, a customer complained that Howard violated the securities laws by alleging that Howard engaged in unauthorized purchase of commercial paper. The claim settled in the amount of $1,134,601.00.

In February 2005, a customer complained that Howard violated the securities laws by alleging that Howard conducted unauthorized trades. The claim alleges settled in the amount of $7,859.83.

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shutterstock_61142644-300x225Adviser, Ezri Shechter, was previously employed at Spencer-Winston Securities Corporation. (Spencer-Winston), has been subject to at least five customer complaints over the course of his career with these claims alleging violations such as suitability, churning, and unauthorized trading. Most notably, Ezri has been suspended and fined by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for unauthorized trading activity.

Since May 2000 through December 2010, there have been three customer complaints against Shechter which cumulatively settled for over $170,000. Additionally, there have also been allegations of unauthorized trading against Shechter. The most recent unauthorized trading allegation occurred in June 2020 and sought damages of $25,000. Shechter’s unauthorized trading activity resulted in a three-month suspension and $12,500 fine by FINRA.

According to a BrokerCheck report, Shechter consented to “[causing] multiple customers of his member firm to sign blank or incomplete discretionary trading forms that he then copied and used to complete discretionary trading forms. The findings stated that Shechter submitted the forms with the photocopied signatures to his firm as originals, causing the firm to make and keep inaccurate books and records regarding the granting of discretionary authority.”

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