NFL Fraud, Covering that Amex Tab, and a Scam Involving Booze in California

SEC fraud charges are more common than you think. On Thursday, the SEC has charged multiple parties with fraud. The defendants comprise Cambridge Capital Group Advisors, its president Phillip Timothy Howard, and Don Warner Reinhard, a former RIA already barred by the SEC. Howard is a Florida attorney who represented the retired NFL players in a class-action lawsuit.

The charge is that they defrauded 20 investors through two hedge funds that operated out of Howard’s law offices. Most of their clients were former NFL players who were defendants in a lawsuit tied to concussions and healthcare.

Feds Arrest Hedge Fund Manager Brenda Smith

Federal agents raided the home of Philadelphia hedge fund manager Brenda Smith on Tuesday.

The Feds say she ran a $63 million Ponzi Scheme and funneled a lot of it from the $105 million she solicited from high-net-worth clients. She allegedly channeled the money through different entities like Broad Reach Capital, Broad Reach Partners, and Bristol Advisors. From there, she allegedly paid off other clients and a $2 million American Express bill.

She reportedly promised clients returns of 30% a year and claimed she’d never had a losing month. Sure… that sounds legit.

SEC Fraud Charges: Feds Shuts Down $300 Million Firm

The last SEC fraud story today: The case of San Diego-based ANI Development.

According to a statement, the agency filed charges and received a consented-to asset freeze against the firm, its leader Gina Champion-Cain, and a relief defendant.

The SEC further said they operated “a multi-year $300 million scheme that defrauded approximately 50 retail investors.”

The scheme allegedly involved Champion-Cain and the firm raising hundreds of millions of dollars from investors. The promise was high returns by making short-term, high-interest loans to individuals who wanted to purchase California alcohol licenses.

But the SEC says it was a scam. The agency further said the defendants never used any money for loans to alcohol license applicants.

“The SEC took emergency action to stop what we allege is an egregious fraud,” said Los Angeles Regional Director Michele Wein Layne. He continued: “Importantly, the agreement we reached with the defendants to freeze their assets during the litigation will give investors the best chance to maximize their recovery going forward.”