Securities Lawyers Blog

Broker Daniel Madasz in Multi-financial Securities Corporation Firm Has Customer Complaint

April 1, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Daniel Madasz (Madasz), previously associated with Multi-financial Securities Corporation, has at least one disclosable event. These events include one regulatory, alleging that Madasz recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a final customer complaint on October 02, 2024.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (‘Commission’) deems it appropriate and in the public interest that public administrative proceedings be, and hereby are, instituted against Daniel Stephen Madasz (‘Respondent’ or ‘Madasz’). In anticipation of the institution of these proceedings, Respondent has submitted an Offer of Settlement (the ‘Offer’) which the Commission has determined to accept. On the basis of this Order and Respondent’s Offer, the Commission finds that: On December 2, 2020, Madasz pleaded guilty to two counts of securities fraud and one count of acting as an unregistered investment adviser representative and, on February 19, 2021, he was sentenced to twelve months in prison and two years supervised release, and he was ordered to pay $550,000 in restitution. State of Kansas v. Daniel Stephen Madasz, Case No. 2019-CR-2440, December 2, 2020, Tenth Judicial District, District Court of Johnson County, Kansas. Facts presented to the Court at the plea hearing, which were also contained in a Statement of Facts contained in the State’s Response to Defendant’s Motion for Downward Departure and Sentencing Memorandum (‘Sentencing Memorandum’) asserted that during September and October 2014, Madasz transacted business as an investment adviser representative in Kansas without being registered as such in Kansas, as required by Kansas law. The Sentencing Memorandum contained additional facts alleging that while Madasz acted as an investment adviser representative, he recommended that two advisory clients, who resided in Kansas, purchase securities issued by Skytec Security Services LLC (‘Skytec’), an Arizona company which installed security systems, but Madasz did not inform them that Skytec had hired him to find investors for it. One client invested in a two-year $200,000, 10%, promissory note issued by Skytec, and the second investor invested in a $350,000 subscription agreement with Skytec. The Sentencing Memorandum also asserted that Madasz failed to disclose amounts Skytec owed to other investors. According to the Sentencing Memorandum, owners of Skytec embezzled the entire amount invested by the two clients. The Sentencing Memorandum asserted that the clients’ investments were securities and that Madasz’s omissions were material and therefore constituted fraud.

There are Recent Customer Complaints with Broker Lavern Bills in Firm Nylife Securities LLC

April 1, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Lavern Bills (Bills), currently associated with Nylife Securities LLC, has at least one disclosable event. These events include one customer complaint, alleging that Bills recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a settled customer complaint on September 09, 2024.

Customer alleges the Variable Annuity policy he purchased in January 2021 was not clearly understood including the limitation to withdraw funds.

There are Recent Customer Complaints with Broker Briggs Matsko in Firm Osaic Wealth, Inc.

April 1, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Briggs Matsko (Matsko), currently associated with Osaic Wealth, Inc., has at least one disclosable event. These events include one customer complaint, alleging that Matsko recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a pending customer complaint with a damage request of $50,000.00 on August 30, 2024.

Claimant alleges their representative recommended an unsuitable oil and gas program

There are Recent Customer Complaints with Broker Mario Martinez in Firm Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated

March 31, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

The law offices of Gana Weinstein LLP are currently investigating claims that Broker Mario Martinez (Martinez) has been accused by investors of engaging in fraudulent misappropriation of their funds. According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), it appears that Martinez was employed by Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated at the time of the activity. If you have been a victim of Martinez’s alleged misconduct our firm may be able to assist you in recovering funds.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a settled customer complaint on December 18, 2024.

Customer alleges misappropriation by the Registered Representative. Customer also alleges that she made a loan to the Registered Representative.

Broker Travis Wolfe in Ausdal Financial Partners, Inc. Firm Has Customer Complaint

March 31, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Travis Wolfe (Wolfe), currently associated with Ausdal Financial Partners, Inc., has at least one disclosable event. These events include one customer complaint, alleging that Wolfe recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a pending customer complaint with a damage request of $400,000.00 on November 19, 2024.

Customer alleges Violation of Federal Securities laws; Violation of IL consmer fraud and deceptive business practices act; Violation of IL securities laws; Breach of contract; Common law fraud; Breach of fiduciary duty; Negligence and Gross negligence.

There are Recent Customer Complaints with Broker Matthew Koelliker in Firm Kkr Capital Markets LLC

March 31, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Matthew Koelliker (Koelliker), currently associated with Kkr Capital Markets LLC, has at least 2 disclosable events. These events include 2 customer complaints, alleging that Koelliker recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a pending customer complaint with a damage request of $15,032,924.63 on October 04, 2024.

Plaintiff alleges various claims related to sudden decrease in value of Plaintiff’s limited partnership interest and failure to honor in full Plaintiff’s redemption request.

Broker Marc Toomey in Metlife Securities Inc. Firm Has Customer Complaint

March 31, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Marc Toomey (Toomey), previously associated with Metlife Securities Inc., has at least one disclosable event. These events include one regulatory, alleging that Toomey recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a final customer complaint on December 09, 2024.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (“Commission”) deems it appropriate and in the public interest that public administrative and cease-and-desist proceedings be, and hereby are, instituted against Marc J. Toomey (“Toomey” or “Respondent”). In anticipation of the institution of these proceedings, Respondent has submitted an Offer of Settlement which the Commission has determined to accept. The commission finds that This proceeding arises from an oil and gas offering fraud in which, between at least October 2018 and December 2021, The Heartland Group Ventures, LLC (“Heartland Group Ventures”), Heartland Production and Recovery LLC (“Heartland Production”), six other Heartland-affiliated entities, and four Heartland-affiliated individuals (collectively, “Heartland”), raised approximately $122 million from more than 700 investors nationwide through five fraudulent and unregistered securities offerings for which there was no applicable registration exemption (“Heartland Offerings”). Between April 2020 and December 2021 (the “relevant time period”), Toomey acted as an unregistered broker-dealer on behalf of Heartland in connection with two of its unregistered securities offerings. Toomey raised approximately $6,872,460.00 for the Heartland Offerings through the offer and sale of unregistered securities to 15 individual investors, both directly and indirectly through three “feeder funds,” companies that Toomey wholly owned and controlled. Toomey, among other things, solicited investors directly and indirectly to invest in certain Heartland Offerings, provided advice to investors relating to the Heartland Offerings, assisted investors in completing investment documents, assisted investors in transferring their funds to Heartland, and received transaction-based compensation from Heartland for those sales. Toomey was not registered as a broker-dealer with the Commission or associated with a registered broker-dealer during the relevant time period. As a result of his conduct, Toomey willfully violated Sections 5(a) and 5(c) of the Securities Act and Section 15(a)(1) of the Exchange Act.

There are Recent Customer Complaints with Broker Dehaven Becker in Firm Steward Partners Investment Solutions, LLC

March 31, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Dehaven Becker (Becker), currently associated with Steward Partners Investment Solutions, LLC, has at least one disclosable event. These events include one customer complaint, alleging that Becker recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a pending customer complaint with a damage request of $34,784.29 on November 21, 2024.

The client alleged details of annuity were not disclosed.

There are Recent Customer Complaints with Broker Richard Mireles in Firm Independent Financial Group, LLC

March 31, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to BrokerCheck records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) broker Richard Mireles (Mireles), currently associated with Independent Financial Group, LLC, has been subject to at least one disclosable event. These events include one regulatory. Several of those complaints against Mireles concern allegations of high frequency trading activity also referred to as churning or excessive trading among other securities laws violations.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a final customer complaint on October 28, 2024.

On September 5, 2024, without admitting or denying the findings, Mireles entered into an Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (‘AWC’) with FINRA wherein Mireles consented to the entry of findings that between July 2020 and December 2022, Mireles, the Vice President of Supervision for Independent Financial Group, LLC (‘IFG’), who supervised IFG lower-level supervisors who reviewed certain firm trade alerts and blotters, failed to reasonably respond to red flags escalated to him by the supervisors, of an IFG registered representative who was excessively trading five customers’ accounts. For example, in May 2021, an IFG supervisor, the second supervisor to raise concerns, alerted Mireles about the volume of high-principal solicited trades that the registered representative was placing in customers’ accounts, including the accounts of senior customers. Mireles, however, directed the supervisor to perform only trade-by-trade assessments to review for compliance with Reg BI and suitability, and not to review the series of trades that the registered representative was placing within an account for potential excessive trading. Between July 2020 and December 2022, the registered representative’s excessive trading in five customers’ accounts, caused a level of trading inconsistent with customers’ investment profiles and that was not in their best interest or was not suitable. Collectively, these five customers, including a 77-year old retiree with a capital preservation investment objective and a moderate risk tolerance and a trust owned by a retiree who was 88 years old when she died in 2020, paid more than $2.2 million in total trading costs and incurred realized losses totaling approximately $2.2 million. Mireles agreed to four-month suspension from association with any FINRA member in all principal capacities and to the payment of a fine in the amount of $5,000.

Broker Christopher Arnella in Morgan Stanley Firm Has Customer Complaint

March 31, 2025 | by Staff Attorney

According to records kept by The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) financial Broker Christopher Arnella (Arnella), currently associated with Morgan Stanley, has at least one disclosable event. These events include one regulatory, alleging that Arnella recommended unsuitable investments in different investment products including debt securities among other allegations and complaints.

FINRA BrokerCheck shows a final customer complaint on October 08, 2024.

On September 5, 2024, without admitting or denying the findings, Arnella entered into an Acceptance, Waiver and Consent (‘AWC’) with FINRA wherein Arnella consented to the entry of findings that between June 2017 and June 2020, Arnella made promissory and unwarranted statements to the public and firm customers about a publicly traded company, as well as statements that predicted performance of the company’s stock, including publicly posting his opinion about what he expected the future stock price to be by the end of 2018, and stating to two firm customers in writing that there was a ‘100 percent’ chance that the company’s loss in a patent litigation trial would be overturned. Arnella agreed to a one-month suspension from associating with any FINRA member in all capacities and to the payment of a fine in the amount of $5,000.