Sean Sullivan of Aegis Capital
On June 24 and 28, 2022, regulators allege Sean Sullivan placed 14 trades of more than $250,000 in the accounts of four customers without their authorization. Also, from April 2 to July 28, 2022, Sullivan willfully failed to amend his public record (CRD) to disclose a felony charge.
On June 24, 2022, after Sullivan became the broker assigned to Customer A’s account. Sullivan executed three stock purchases totaling $8,971 plus commissions of $270 and other costs in the account. Customer A did not authorize Sullivan to execute these stock trades.
Additionally, on June 28, 2022, after Sullivan became the broker assigned to Customer B’s accounts. Sullivan executed five stock purchases totaling $49,062 plus commissions of $1,200 and other costs, and three stock sales totaling $49,591 plus commissions of $250 and other costs.
On June 28, 2022, after Sullivan became a broker assigned to Customer C’s account. Sullivan executed a stock sale for $7,807 plus a commission of $272 and other costs in the account. Customer C did not authorize Sullivan to execute that trade.
Further, Sullivan did not just commit fraud with churning. On March 2, 2022, the State of New York issued a felony complaint charging Sullivan with burglary in the first degree. Sullivan did not report this charge to his employer or allow it to be on his public disclosure.
This is a continuation of a history of alleged wrongdoing. Sullivan has ten disclosures, incidents evidencing an inability to manage funds, on his record.
Jeffrey Pederson represents investors victimized by bad brokers. Call to discuss losses with Sullivan or other brokers.
Ian Bell Fraud
On December 10, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged Denver resident Ian Bell with securities fraud for lying to investors and misappropriating their funds in connection with a fraudulent day-trading scheme.
Bell pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and another for money laundering in connection with this matter. Under a plea agreement, he agreed to serve three years in prison.
The SEC’s complaint alleged that, between July 2020 and March 2023, Bell raised more than $1.3 million from at least 29 investors, including professional athletes in Colorado, who are unidentified in the complaint. The SEC alleges that Bell lied to investors about his trading performance, including by sending fabricated account performance screenshots.
According to the complaint, several of Bell’s investors referred family and friends to Bell because of the false statements. The SEC further alleges that Bell lost nearly all of the investors’ money. Bell then kept hundreds of thousands of dollars for his personal use. To conceal his fraud, Bell lied to investors about repayments.
The SEC’s complaint charges Bell with violating the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder. Federal prosecutors filed this complaint in the U.S. District Court for Colorado.
“Bell portrayed himself as a successful investment advisor and preyed on innocent victims for personal gain,” stated the prosecutor at sentencing. Federal officials also stated, “Bell defrauded innocent victims who had placed their trust in him and subsequently suffered financial losses and undue emotional stress.”
Bell is known for targeting professional athletes with his scam. The scam was not limited to professional athletes.
Jeffrey Pederson helps defrauded investors in Colorado.
Callable Note Loss
Callable note loss is something that can destroy the savings of an investor. Investors, though, may have recourse for the inappropriate recommendation of these investments.
Callable notes, especially auto-callable structured notes, are complex financial instruments that may not be suitable for all investors. FINRA, the regulator overseeing securities brokerages, has repeatedly reminded professionals of the complexity and risk of structured notes, including auto-callable notes, in its suitability rules and investor alerts. The same is true of the SEC.
FINRA ordered Stifel to pay $132 million award to investors over such structured investments in March of 2025. This is the second highest investor award in the history of FINRA.
On July 23, 2025, an investor of Diana M. Leon, of Osaic Wealth, lodged a customer complaint. The customer alleges that callable note purchases were poorly recommended and unsuitable.
FINRA suitability, under Reg BI, analysis is two-fold: 1) Reasonable-Basis Suitability, ensuring that a recommended security is suitable for at least some investors; and 2) Customer-Specific Suitability, determining whether a recommendation is appropriate for a particular customer based on their financial situation and objectives.
Jeffrey Pederson represents investors in suitability cases and has done so for over 20 years. Please contact if you wish to discuss.
Michael McFeeley Oil Investment Loss Recovery
LPL broker and CFP Michael McFeeley is the subject of numerous legal actions and complaints. The subject is oil and gas investments. Allegations are that LPL, through McFeeley, sold the investments inappropriately and without sufficient investigation. McFeeley is with the Academy Financial office of LPL located in Lutherville, MD.
Currently the subject of nine customer disputes, investors accuse McFeeley and his firm of inappropriate oil and gas recommendations. Oil and gas investments suitable only for a small section of the investing public. Additionally, investments must undergo investigation with due diligence by a brokerage to be sold to any investor. This latter requirement is the crux of the dispute.
McFeeley holds himself out as a CFP, Certified Financial Planner, on his website. A financial advisor who has met the CFP Board’s education, examination, experience, and ethics requirements. Their responsibilities generally fall into three main areas: 1) Client-centered fiduciary duty; 2) Financial planning and advice; and 3) Ongoing monitoring and compliance. In short, a CFP’s responsibility is to deliver holistic, ethical, and fiduciary-level financial advice to help clients manage all aspects of their financial lives.
Further, McFeeley asserts “We treat our clients’ wealth and planning needs as if it was our own and act as a catalyst to accomplish their goals from a cross disciplinary perspective.” The investors assert that LPL and McFeeley did not reach this standard.
Please contact Jeffrey Pederson with issues concerning oil and gas investments. He has helped his clients recover tens of millions of dollars over the last 25 years.
Isaak Bond Investments
On, July 7, 2025, Isaak Bond Investments (IBI) entered into a settlement with regulators for failing to be adequately capitalized. FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, issued the Letter of Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (AWC) censuring and fining IBI $20,000. Without admitting or denying the findings, the Lakewood, Colorado-based IBI consented to the sanctions.
FINRA’s findings state that IBI and another entity traded municipal securities between them. The IBI sold the securities to the street and took the gain or loss on each trade. Despite assuming the gains and losses of these positions, the firm did not treat these securities as being part of its inventory of marketable securities.
Consequently, the firm failed to take the required haircuts for securities positions held by the firm in its net capital computations. The Exchange Act requires brokerages to apply certain reductions of its assets, or “haircuts,” in the calculation of assets. This includes reducing the value of securities in its inventory. Failure to apply such haircuts resulted in inaccurate net capital computations for IBI. Regulators require brokerages to have threshold levels of net capitalization. These capitalization thresholds ensure sufficient financial health. Incorrect calculations create a false image.
The findings also stated that the firm failed to preserve accurate records. This includes records of its net capital contained in its FOCUS report. When the firm failed to take the correct haircuts in its net capital computations, it recorded its inaccurate net capital on its general ledger.
Further, the firm’s FOCUS filings were inaccurate in all 23 months between January 2022 and November 2023. Correct books and records are essential to investor protection. In addition, the IBI failed to file with FINRA and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) a same-day notification of its net capital deficiency. The firm became aware of its net capital deficiency on October 22, 2024. However, the firm failed to file the required financial notification until November 27, 2024. IBI also failed to conduct an annual independent test of its anti-money laundering (AML) compliance program.
We are a firm that protects investors. Contact us to discuss problems with the management of your savings.
Centurian Apartment REIT
On September 15, 2025, Centurian Apartment REIT, the $7.9 billion real estate investment trust, limited investor redemptions. This is the report of Canadian news outlets. If true, this REIT focusing on Canadian residential real estate may jeopardize the holdings of many investors. This is especially true of those needing the investment for income or liquidity.
FINRA, the financial industry regulatory authority, warns advisors of the perils of REIT investing and has been doing so for years. The risks are many. Despite these risks, may advisors recommend REITs. These risks include illiquidity, loss of value quickly, inability to determine whether the REIT is being mismanaged and abrupt cessation of dividends.
Advisors often overlook those risks because of the high commissions paid by REITs. Some REITs pay commissions 10 to 15 times higher than a publicly traded share of common stock.
Jeffrey Pederson represents investors. Please contact us if you have questions of whether your advisor sold a REIT or other investment incorrectly.
Tom Vukota of VCM
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) settled charges against former Colorado resident Tomislav Vukota aka Tom Vukota (Vukota). The settlement included the two investment adviser entities he controls, Vukota Capital Management, LLC (VCM) and VCM Global Asset Management Ltd. (VGAM). The allegations were breaching their fiduciary duties and making material misrepresentations to private funds and investors.
Vukota operated the VCM entities out of its offices in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The SEC filed its suit against them in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.
According to the SEC’s complaint, Vukota engaged in four alleged types of negligent misconduct. First, from at least 2017 through May 2022, Vukota and VCM caused advisors to make short-term loans to VCM at below-market rates to cover cash shortfalls at other private funds.
Second, the private funds’ partnership agreements prohibited such loans and this prohibition was not disclosed to investors.
Third, Vukota and VCM sent misleading letters to the investors in four private funds in connection with Vukota’s attempt to buy the investors’ interests. According to the complaint, the buyout letters failed to disclose Vukota’s conflicts of interest.
Fourth, the complaint alleges that from at least 2017 through 2023, Vukota and VGAM made material misstatements in marketing and offering materials for the Vukota Multi-Strategy Fund concerning the existence of an auditor, the amount of assets under management, the investment strategy, and the filing status as an exempt reporting adviser.
Jeffrey Pederson represents Colorado investment fraud victims and has done so successfully for over 20 years. Call to discuss this or other issues of investment fraud or mismanagement.
Blue Owl Investments
Blue Owl investments are private credit investments that pose a threat to investors saving for retirement. The commissions for the sale of this investment are large. This leads some advisors to assert that the investments are moderate risk or good for a retirement portfolio when they are often not.
Recognizing the risks, regulators put special supervisory obligations on firms that sell alts because of the additional risk many carry.
Further, any type of alternative investment is limited for even the most sophisticated investors. Some firms and states limit the investment to 10% of the portfolio regardless of the level of risk the investor is willing to take.
Many investment experts also consider the upside of private credit as illusory. They opine that the return on private credit is no better than, and in some cases less, than more conservative and transparent investments.
Investors have recourse when advisors recommend investments that are too risky or contradict sound investment planning.
Jeffrey Pederson is an attorney that has recovered tens of millions for his clients over the last 25 years. In doing so, he has represented hundreds of investors losing savings from overly aggressive and fraudulent retirement planning like Blue Owl.
Bluerock Total Income+
Bluerock Total Income+ investors hoped that going public would solve their problems. This investment that brokers and advisors touted as safe is looking to list for a price below its net asset value. These investors may have recourse.
Alternative investments, such as Bluerock, are highly risky. Unfortunately for investors, the investments pay relatively high commissions and other incentives to advisors. This gives an incentive to use inappropriate means to sell the investments.
Bluerock is a real estate fund. As a private investment, there is not the level of scrutiny of publicly traded funds. This means the advisors selling the investment knew that the investment was high risk.
Another issue adding risk is the illiquidity of Bluerock. Liquidity was always an issue with Bluerock. Investors could not access their funds without Bluerock issuing a liquidity event. This was also known by advisors. Regulators routinely warn advisors that such investments are high risk. The regulators also state that such investments are not for most investors and advisors should not be swayed by high commissions.
Investors have recourse when sold unsuitable investments. Jeffrey Pederson represents investors who were sold inappropriate investments and has been doing so for over 20 years. Call if you wish to discuss.
Inappropriate Asset Allocations
Inappropriate asset allocations can enrich advisors at the expense of investors. Investors have recourse when such misallocation occurs.
On September 2, 2025, the CEO of Vanguard told Fortune magazine that retirement savers should have no more than 40% of their portfolio in stocks. Greg Davis has been CEO of Vanguard for 20 years. This CEO stated that the appropriate allocation is no more than 20% domestic stocks, no more than 20% foreign stocks, and the rest in fixed income. By “fixed income,” he means bonds.
This departs from the advice of many advisors. Advisors rarely invest in bonds. One reason is the low commission bonds pay stockbrokers and financial advisors.
Inappropriate allocation can also mean too many alternative investments. Commonly referred to as “alts” they are inherently risky. Regulators and many internal brokerage rules limit such investments to 10% of a portfolio. Alts can pay a commission 10x greater than a share of common stock.
Financial professionals, such as stockbrokers, wealth managers, investment advisors, and financial advisors, have a duty to recommend investments in your best interests. Other professionals must also, at the very least, recommend only suitable investments.
Contact Jeff Pederson with questions about inappropriate asset allocation.