As recently reported, former Raymond James & Associates, Inc. broker Frederick M. Stow (CRD# 864436) has been charged with wire fraud, identity theft, and securities fraud by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee. In conjunction with the pending criminal proceeding, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) initiated a Civil Complaint against Mr. Stow on June 11, 2020, alleging “the systematic theft of two elderly brokerage customers’ funds . . . over the course of more than three years.”

As alleged by the SEC, Mr. Stow purportedly defrauded two senior customers (Customer A and Customer B) by making unauthorized transfers of monies into his own account, totaling $943,500. Further, the Complaint alleges that Mr. Stow sold securities from one elderly customer’s IRA (Customer A – a retired airline pilot and World War II veteran) and forged wire transfer letters of authorization to move the proceeds to Mr. Stow’s bank account, without the customer’s knowledge or consent. As alleged, the letters of authorization falsely identified the receiving account as the customer’s account. Mr. Stow purportedly made 74 of these transfers. When Customer A passed away, resulting in the account being frozen, Mr. Stow allegedly began transferring funds from another elderly customer’s account (Customer B).

According to FINRA BrokerCheck, Mr. Stow began his career in the securities industry in 1979, and was affiliated with numerous firms over the course of his 40-year career. Most recently, Mr. Stow was employed as a broker with Raymond James in the firm’s Cool Springs, Tennessee office from 2013 until his termination on May 29, 2019 in connection with allegedly “misappropriating funds from customer accounts.” Following Mr. Stow’s termination by Raymond James, FINRA initiated an investigation. Pursuant to FINRA Rule 9552(h), and in accordance with Mr. Stow’s purported failure to respond to FINRA’s request for information, Stow received an industry bar, effective January 21, 2020.

Brokerage firms like Raymond James are legally obligated under applicable securities laws and FINRA rules to supervise their employees, including their registered representatives. To the extent that a broker or financial advisor breaches a duty owed to one of his or her clients, or in more serious instances of alleged fraud or misappropriation of assets, the brokerage firm employing that financial advisor may be held liable for any losses suffered by a customer.

The attorneys at Giarrusso Law Group LLC have considerable experience in working closely with investors to resolve all manner of issues, including losses suffered due to securities fraud or related misconduct by a broker or financial advisor. Investors may pursue a claim to recover monies through securities arbitration before FINRA, or in some instances, through litigation. Investors who wish to discuss a possible claim are invited to contact us by telephone at (201) 771-1115 or by email at info@gialawgroup.com for a no-cost, confidential consultation.