FINRA COMPENSATES WIDOW SCAMMED BY ADVISOR
A FINRA panel committee has ordered the National Planning Corporation to give over $2.6 million to an 84-year-old woman who was sold false promissory notes.
In a September 2017 petition, Sandra Alford of St. Louis sued National Planning of negligent misrepresentation, common law fraud, breach of contract and negligent supervision. Sandra Alford of St. Louis, was William Glaser's client, a past certified representative of the firm.
The Swindler
William Glaser, an investment adviser from Ellisville was convicted to three years in prison for swindling investors with loans to a fraudulent St. Louis County builder who was convicted later in the day to six and one-half years in prison. The former adviser, William "Bill" Glaser, 61, was sanctioned to reimburse $1.5 million to victims. The builder, Paul E, Creager, 40, was authorized to refund $3.3 million.
However, Glaser pleaded guilty to three counts of wire fraud on February 26, 2019, and appeared before a U.S. District Court for sentencing.
Creager, of Wildwood, pleaded guilty in January and admitted that he misled an investor into granting him $2.5 million. He also acknowledged filing a counterfeit affidavit claiming all subcontractors had been paid before the closing of a Kirkwood home sale.
Sandra Alford’s petition stated that Glaser invested her assets in two false promissory notes and recommended other inappropriate investments, including non-traded real estate investment trusts and variable annuities, for the sole objective of creating commissions and fees to his and the company’s benefit.
Several Perspectives on Advisor’s Fraudulent Activities
One of Alford’s attorneys, Richard Fosher, said what Glaser did to the aging widow was outrageous, and the panel concurred. He emphasized that it was after Glaser sold Alford's non-traded REITs and other unfortunate investments that he established a pattern of changing in and out of annuities to create money for himself. “He then sold her promissory notes in a private company that were worthless. The broker firm did not supervise him,” Fosher said.
According to the claim, the National Planning rejected the allegations and declared various affirmative defenses. National Planning, a past affiliate of Jackson National Life Insurance Company, was traded in 2017 to LPL Financial. Alford had not explored penal damages, but in an increase to $1.58 million in compensatory damages and $45,830 in costs, the arbitration committee granted her penal damages of $1 million.
Fosher noted that the latter grant confirmed the panel's unanimous perception that the underlying strategy by Glaser was extreme.
“We feel the panel got this one right. We are certainly happy for our client,” he said.
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