Investor Rights Blog

Sonya Camarco (CRD #2427529), a longtime Colorado Springs resident and former Broker with LPL Financial LLC (CRD#6413) has been the subject of a SEC requested asset freeze. The SEC complaint that alleged Camarco had, over the past 13 years, systematically defrauded and stolen money from her client’s investment accounts. The SEC further alleged that Sonya Camarco forged client signatures on checks made out to “C Investments” a fictitious investment firm that Camarco controlled. When confronted...Read More

The Law Firm of David R Chase is investigating Ohio-based Cetera Advisors(CRD#10299) broker David Joseph Schmerber (CRD#2093918) after a customer filed a $1,000,000.00 million dollar FINRA arbitration against him. According to Schmerber’s FINRA BrokerCheck report, the claimants filed a FINRA arbitration complaint in March 2017 against Schmerber alleging he invested their accounts in various complex and unsuitable speculative securities. LPL Financial employed Schmerber from March 1997 until March of 2017. Schmerber operated out of LPL’s...Read More

 The Law Firm of David Chase is reviewing claims of unsuitable trades and breach of fiduciary duty by former New York based-based Capitol Securities Management INC. (CRD #14169) broker Andrew Bennett Kramer (CRD#1896558) after FINRA bared him permanently. According to Kramer’s FINRA BrokerCheck report, FINRA suspended Kramer in April of 2017 after he failed to respond to FINRA’s request for documents and information regarding a customer’s compliant.  According to Kramer’s BrokerCheck report, he made multiple...Read More

The Law Firm of David Chase is reviewing allegations of outside business activity and unsuitable recommendations by former Vanguard Capital (CRD #22081) broker John A. Blake-Zuniga (CRD #1014886) after FINRA suspended him for 22 months. According to Blake-Zuniga’s FINRA BrokerCheck report, FINRA suspended him for 22 months after issuing sanctions related to allegations that he borrowed funds in the amount of $775,000 from two of his clients’ accounts. Complaints also allege that Blake-Zuniga inappropriately recommended...Read More

The Law Firm of David Chase are investigating claims of unauthorized trading, unsuitable recommendations and breach of fiduciary duty by New York-based Morgan Stanley (CRD # 149777) broker Barry F Connell (CRD #3070984) after FINRA suspended him. According Connell’s FINRA BrokerCheck report, FINRA suspended and permanently barred Connell in January of 2017 after he failed to respond to a FINRA information request.  According to Connell’s BrokerCheck report, he exercised discretionary authority in customers’ accounts.  On...Read More

The Law Firm of David Chase is analyzing claims of unsuitability and breach of fiduciary duty brought against former Ameritas Investment Corp (CRD #14869) broker Alonza Barnett JR. (CRD #4577695) after a customer filed a $1.75 million FINRA arbitration against him. According to Barnett’s FINRA BrokerCheck report, a customer filed an FINRA arbitration complaint in February 2017 against Barnett alleging breach of fiduciary duty, negligence, the conversion of funds and damages in the amount of...Read More

As most individual investors now understand, oil and gas securities, including common stock, bonds and master limited partnerships (MLPs), can be extremely volatile, high-risk and lead to substantial losses. Over the last few years, certain financial advisors and stockbrokers, and the financial institutions for whom they worked, fell in love with oil and gas securities, particularly for their high-yield dividends in an otherwise low-to-no yield market environment. As a result of this reckless infatuation by...Read More