The law firm of Oakes & Fosher is presently investigating the alleged misconduct of former securities broker Leon Vaccarelli. According to his publicly available FINRA BrokerCheck report, Leon Vaccarelli has been the subject of multiple customer disputes.
Leon Vaccarelli was a Connecticut base securities broker. He worked in the securities industry for seventeen years. During his career, he was registered with four different securities firms. He is no longer working as a registered securities broker in any fashion.
His Registrations
- Ameriprise Financial Services (1999-2007)
- IDS Life Insurance Company (1999-2006)
- QA3 Financial Corp. (2007-2011)
- The Investment Center (2011-2017)
The Allegations
In August 2017, Leon Vaccarelli was sanctioned by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission. The findings in this matter state that he, through his business Lux Financial Services, misappropriated and misused investment funds he obtained from customers. He allegedly used various different methods to secure funds including; allegedly stealing from a trust fund for which he was the trustee, soliciting his customers from his affiliated firm ‘The Investment Center’ for additional funds while allegedly falsely representing it would be invested in their existing brokerage accounts, or even persuading customers to sell existing investments, like annuities, to fund purchases of notes. Vaccarelli allegedly secured over $1 million from nine different investors, most of whom were elderly. He then allegedly used these funds to pay for personal expenses. These civil charges are currently pending. Five suits were filed against Leon Vaccarelli’s former member firm due to his alleged fund conversion. These five suits were settled for a total of $641,728 in damages being awarded to the afflicted customers. In May 2018, Leon Vaccarelli was convicted on charges of mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering.
What Does This Mean?
Converting a customer’s funds is one of the most blatant and heinous act a securities brokers could ever commit–especially when they specifically target elderly investors. Investors spend their entire lives saving money for retirement and for a securities broker to just steal it out right from under them to fund their luxurious lifestyle is abhorrent. Securities firms are liable to afflicted investors for their losses, even after they have terminated the perpetrating party. Converting a customer’s funds is a crime committed while the broker is acting in the scope of their employment, which means their firms should be adequately monitoring their activities. Securities firms who fail to monitor its registered brokers to the necessary standard can cause investors to experience significant losses if their brokers are engaging in any unauthorized and potentially harmful activities.
Oakes & Fosher Can Help
Many investors are unaware of the legal recourse available to them after losing money due to securities broker fraud and/or negligence. The truth is that investors who have lost money in this fashion may actually be entitled to damages. Oakes & Fosher dedicates its entire legal practice to helping investors across the nation. If you or someone you know, have lost money investing with Leon Vaccarelli, please contact Oakes & Fosher for a free and private consultation. Oakes & Fosher handles cases on a contingency basis, which means there are no fees charged unless we collect for you.
