If you were an investor of Sean Kelly, previously of Center Street Securities, Capital Financial Services, and Lion’s Share Financial, please call 303-300-5022. We are currently investigating his theft of investor funds.
Kelly, a Georgia stock broker, is facing criminal and SEC charges alleging that he stole at least $1 million from a dozen clients. These clients include elderly widows and military veterans. Kelly stole their savings and used the money for luxuries including Super Bowl tickets and vacations.
Sean Kelly, 49, of Marietta, Ga., and a stockbroker for Center Street Securities Inc., also is accused of falsely presenting himself to clients as both a brokerage firm and an investment advisor, according to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Administration.
Investors have recourse when investment professionals turn bad.
The financial fraud of Kelly should have been foreseen by his employers. The record of Kelly shows a broker with significant financial problems. He has a history of multiple tax liens, a bankruptcy, and what is described as a “continuation of a prior bankruptcy.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia has filed criminal charges against Kelly and placed him under arrest, according to the SEC.
The SEC Complaint indicates that the fraud was fairly simple. Kelly would have his clients make checks out to Lion’s Share. The Complaint goes on state that Kelly used Lion’s Share as “his personal piggy bank.”
There has also been a temporary restraining order entered. Such an order freezes the assets of Kelly.
Kelly, who has been a stockbroker for about 18 years, has been stealing money from clients since at least 2014, using recruiting techniques such as offering free tax preparation services for veterans and holding free retirement planning seminars in assisted living facilities, according to the SEC.
The theft could be well-above the $1 million currently estimated. The number is reliant upon the documents the SEC has been able to obtain from the investigation of Kelly. There are likely many more investors who will need to bring actions on their own to obtain recovery of their losses.
Brokerage firms have a duty to investigate and monitor outside business activities such as the activities of Kelly. Further, FINRA requires securities brokerages to carry fidelity insurance.
Kelly’s use of Lion’s Share was well known to his employers. Insufficient safeguard’s existed to protect the investors.
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