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FINRA January 2017 Disciplinary Actions

FINRA takes disciplinary actions against firms and individuals for violations of FINRA rules; federal securities laws, rules, and regulations; and the rules of the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board. Below are a number of penalties announced by the regulator in January 2017. If you have been a victim of any of the below behavior, you may have legal recourse. Please contact attorney Richard Frankowski today at 888-741-7503 for a free consultation. FINRA censured and fined VFG Securities, Inc. of Culver City, California $50,000, $10,000 of which is joint and several with Jason Bryce Vanclef. According to FINRA, the firm and Vanclef distributed and listed for sale online Vanclef's self-published book, which contained, false, exaggerated, unwarranted, or misleading statements, and omitted material facts or qualifications where the omissions caused the communication to be misleading. The findings also state they provided customers with misleading personalized recommendation spreadsheets. Advisors Clearing Network, Inc. of Pasadena, California was also censured and fined $50,000. FINRA found that it [...]

By |January 24th, 2017|Broker Check, FINRA, Fraud, Legal Matters, Press Releases & News, SEC|
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Richard Gearhart & George McKown Charged With Securities Fraud

Richard Gearhart of Lowell, Indiana and George McKown of Indianapolis, Indiana have been indicted on fraud charges after prosecutors claim they sold securities to investors despite not being registered to do so. The two were charged with conspiracy to commit securities fraud, securities fraud, and wire fraud, said U.S. Attorney David Capp. According to court documents, Gearhart and McKown allegedly sold securities to people who transferred their pensions, annuities, 401(k)s and cash to invest with them, through Asset Preservation Specialists Inc. under the guarantee that their investments would remain safe. Neither Richard Gearhart nor George McKown was registered to sell securities with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission or the state of Indiana. Secretary of State Connie Lawson said in a news release that no matter how trustworthy someone seems, potential investors should ensure that person and the person's businesses are registered with the state of Indiana. "Gearhart had all the warning signs of a typical [...]

By |January 16th, 2017|Fraud, Press Releases & News, SEC|
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FDA Official And Hedge Fund Managers Charged In Securities Scheme

According to federal prosecutors, two hedge fund managers--Sanjay Valvani and Christopher Plaford-- conspired with a former U.S. Food and Drug Administration official--George Johnston, who had access to insider information on the fate of generic drug candidates--to profit by committing securities fraud. While employed as Visium Asset Management hedge fund managers, Valvani and Plaford executed stock trades based on insider information from Johnston about generic drug applications, said the prosecution. Prosecutors also allege Plaford and Stefan Lumiere conspired to inflate the value of a fixed-income fund they were managing for Visium. “As alleged, Valvani, Johnston, and Plaford conspired to extract highly confidential and tightly guarded information about pending applications for general drug approvals from the FDA, and traded on such information, reaping millions of dollars in illegal profits," U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a statement. "Lumiere and Plaford also allegedly conspired to mismark securities held by their fund, lying to their investors and unjustly enriching themselves in the process.” Valvani [...]

By |June 16th, 2016|Fraud, Press Releases & News, SEC|
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FL Broker Charged With $131M Scam

Pranav Patel, a stockbroker from Tamarac, Florida, has been charged in an alleged $131 million stock manipulation scam after investigations by a task force set up for President Barack Obama’s war on financial crimes, according to federal officials. Patel and eight others engaged in the multi-state scam “through a dizzying round of unauthorized trades” to pump up the share price of a company with no business operations, federal prosecutor Robert L. Capers said. The case involves the NASDAQ-traded stocks of ForceField Energy Inc., which claimed to be a world-wide distributor LED lighting products. The nine co-conspirators were from four states across the US and were charged with securities fraud, conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering and making a false statement to law enforcement officials. The charges followed actions by the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force that “was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes,” Capers’ office said. The nine, who included Naveed [...]

By |May 20th, 2016|Fraud, Press Releases & News|
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