Buford, Georgia
UPDATE June 11,2013– an order of preliminary injunction against Blake Richards was entered by the Honorable Julie E. Carnes of the Northern District of Georgia enjoining Richards from further violations of the securities laws.
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In a civil complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, former LPL Financial adviser Blake Richards of Buford, Georgia, was charged the the Securities & Exchange Commission with defrauding investors and misappropriating $2 million dollars from six or more clients.
According to the complaint, the SEC alleges that between 2009-2013, Richards directed clients to write checks to his outside business instead of LPL and that many of the purported investments were frauds. Most of the invested funds came from client’s retirement savings or life insurance proceeds. The SEC also alleges that Richards gave fake financial statements to at least one client.
Richards registration history in the industry according to FINRA records is as follows:
- LPL Financial 05/2009-05/2013
- Ameriprise Advisor Services 02/2007-05/2009
- A.G. Edwards & Sons, Inc. 08/2004-02/2007
- Edward Jones 04/2000-08/2004
This is the third major issue this week for LPL, the nation’s fourth largest broker dealer.
On May 21, 2013, FINRA hit LPL with a $9 million dollar fine for significant issues related to their email system and for making misstatements to regulators during the investigation. More on that here.
The next day, Massachusetts regulators announced that LPL would have to pay nearly twice the amount , $5 million, to resolve the investigation of their sales practices related nontraded real estate investment trusts (REITs) . See this for more details.
Investors who have suffered losses with LPL or other broker dealers may be able to recover those losses through FINRA arbitration. Contact us for a no charge consultation.
Rex Securities Law , located in Boca Raton, FL, provides representation to investors nationwide who are seeking recovery of investment losses due to the negligence or fraud of stockbrokers and broker dealers. If you have questions about how your account has been handled, call to speak with an experienced securities attorney. Most cases handled on a contingent fee basis meaning that you do not pay legal fees unless we are successful.
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