Articles Posted in Disciplinary Actions

In October, 2015, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) announced that Walter Chao submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (AWC) in which he was assessed a deferred fine of $30,000, suspended from association with any FINRA member in any capacity for two years. He was also required to requalify as a general securities principal by taking and passing the Series 24 examination prior to associating with any FINRA member firm as a general securities principal following his suspension.

Without admitting or denying the findings, Walter Chao consented to the sanctions, and to the entry of findings that he participated in private securities transactions totaling $1.27 million without his firm’s approval. The findings stated that Chao had requested approval but the firm denied his request.

The findings also stated that Chao took steps to conceal his participation in the private securities transactions from his firm. Chao regularly used an unapproved email address for communications related to the transactions with the selling firm. In addition, Chao provided false and misleading answers in his firm’s compliance questionnaire by stating that he had not participated in any private securities transactions, and failed to disclose his use of an unapproved email address. The findings also included that Chao provided false and misleading statements to FINRA regarding his involvement in the private securities transactions.

In October, 2015, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) announced that H. Beck submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (AWC) in which the firm was censured and fined $40,000.

Without admitting or denying the findings, the firm consented to the sanctions and to the entry of findings that it failed to enforce its written supervisory procedures regarding on-going due diligence. The findings stated that H. Beck’s written supervisory procedures provided that the firm would conduct an ongoing review of the companies with which it maintained a business relationship, and would report any significant developments to senior management.

However, the firm failed to conduct adequate ongoing due diligence on three private placement funds. The findings also stated that the firm failed to detect and investigate the deterioration of the financial condition of the funds and the funds’ investment adviser.

In October, 2015, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) announced that Cedar Point Capital submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (AWC) in which the firm was censured and fined $10,000. Without admitting or denying the findings, the firm consented to the sanctions and to the entry of findings that it willfully violated Securities Exchange Act of 1934 Rule 10b-9 by reducing the minimum amount of funds required to close a private placement without first returning all escrowed funds to subscribers.

Cedar Point Capital’s registration and disciplinary history

In order to lawfully sell investments to the public, one must either be registered or exempt from registration. Cedar Point Capital is registered with the SEC, one self regulatory organization and in 17 states. According to FINRA’s CRD disclosure report, Cedar Point Capital has been the subject one regulatory investigation.

In October, 2015, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) announced that Braymen, Lambert and Noel Securities submitted a Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (AWC) in which the firm was censured and fined $70,000. Without admitting or denying the findings, BLNS consented to the sanctions and to the entry of findings that the firm failed to supervise its private placement securities business and the activities of registered representatives located in two of its branch offices.

The findings stated that the firm, acting through Ms. Braymen, failed to register two branch office locations and failed to conduct and adequately document branch office inspections. FINRA found the firm failed to document the testing and verification of its policies and procedures. In addition, the firm and Ms. Braymen failed to maintain a schedule for compliance inspections of its non-branch offices and maintained inadequate supervisory systems and written supervisory procedures regarding scheduling such inspections.

The findings also included that the firm failed to capture, review and retain certain email correspondence, and failed to enforce its written supervisory procedures regarding documenting reviews of other email correspondence.

On November 10, 2015 the Securities and Exchange announced that it charged Texas-based insurance agent Bobby M. Collins with operating a fraud out of his insurance and retirement planning business, Collins Insurance Companies a/k/a BMC Retirement Planning

According to the SEC’s complaint, filed in the Northern District of Texas, Collins targeted elderly investors through BMC Retirement Planning dating back to at least 2010.  Collins lured many elderly investors to invest more than $4.6 million in high-yield, unsecured notes.   Collins told the investors that he would use their funds to grow his business, and pay significant returns from new business generation and revenue growth.

The SEC’s complaint alleges that Collins made false promises to his investors, and instead of using investor funds to expand BMC Retirement Planning, he spent the funds on mortgages and luxury car payments, and to pay distributions to earlier investors.  Collins kept the ponzi scheme going by relying on a stream of new and repeat investors.

On October 15, 2015 the Securities and Exchange Commission issued an Order instituting administrative proceedings pursuant to section 15(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Section 203(f) of the Investment Advisors Act of 1940 against Jason Muskey.

The complaint against Jason Muskey arises from his guilty plea to mail fraud, money laundering, and identity theft before the United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, in United States v. Jason Muskey, Criminal Action No. 3-CR-15-18.

From June 2006 through June 2014 Jason Muskey was a registered representative with Ameritas Investment Corporation in Moosic, PA and also owned and operated Muskey Financial Services.

On October 16, 2015 the Securities and Exchange Commission issued an Order instituting administrative proceedings pursuant to section 15(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Section 203(f) of the Investment Advisors Act of 1940 against Fred McMenimen.

McMenimen was employed as a registered representative at Pruco Securities in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. FINRA permanently barred McMenimen from the securities industry in 2013.

On October 31, 2014, Fred McMenimen agreed to plead guilty to: one count of mail fraud before the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire in United States of America v. Frederick V. McMenimen, Case No. 12-CR- 130-01-SM.

On November 2, 2015 the Securities and Exchange Commission issued an Order instituting administrative proceedings pursuant to section 15(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Section 203(f) of the Investment Advisors Act of 1940 against Jonathan Warren Brooks.

Brooks is currently incarcerated in Kershaw, South Carolina. He was a registered investment adviser representative of J. Brooks Financial and also worked as a registered representative with High Street Securities, Inc., from November 2011 to November 2012; and with Sicor Securities, Inc. from September 2009 to November 2011.

On September 18, 2014, Brooks pleaded guilty to three felony counts of securities fraud and two felony counts of forgery in Aiken County, South Carolina. On the same day, the court sentenced Jonathan Warren Brooks to fourteen years in prison, and ordered him to pay over six million dollars in restitution.

On October 30, 2015 in the Southern District of Ohio The Securities and Exchange Commission filed an enforcement action against William Apostelos and his companies WMA Enterprises, LLC, Midwest Green Resources, and OVO Wealth Management. The complaint alleged that Willlaim Apostelos and his companies conducted a fraudulent investment scheme.

The SEC’s complaint alleges that William Apostelos, WMA, Midwest Green, and OVO raised over $66 million from over 300 investors since January, 2010 and that throughout the alleged scheme, William Apostelos made multiple misrepresentations to recruit new investors.  The SEC alleges that Apostelos told investors that their funds would be invested in stock, precious metals, real estate, and used to make short-term loans to small businesses and farmers.

The SEC alleges that, in fact, William Apostelos funneled nearly all the investor funds to WMA’s bank accounts and used them to make ponzi scheme like payments to earlier investors and promoters of the scheme; to finance other businesses that he owned; and to support his lavish lifestyle, including the payment of gambling expenditures.

On March 5, 2015 a federal judge ordered Deepal Wannakuwatte to pay over $100 million in restitution to the victims of his decade long ponzi scheme. In November of last year Deepal Wannakuwatte was sentenced to 20 years in prison and ordered to forfeit multiple properties, vehicles, business interests, and bank accounts to be used to provide restitution to victims.

According to court documents, from 2002 to 2014, Wannakuwatte obtained well over $230 million from his victims, some of which he returned to them as “fake” profit payments. Most of the money raised was used by Deepal Wannakuwatte to pay himself and his family and pay outstanding debts unrelated to his false representations.

Wannakuwatte offered his investors several different bogus high-yield investment opportunities, and closed the sales by touting his relationship to the VA, and by showing his victims phony corporate documents, fraudulent tax returns, and bogus sales documents.