Stoltmann Law Offices continues to investigate Akron, Ohio-based KGTA Petroleum. On December 8th, 2014, criminal charges were brought against KGTA’s co-owner and operator, Kenneth A. Grant, who was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and securities fraud and money laundering. The FBI, IRS and the U.S. Attorney’s Cleveland office continue to investigate the company and its owners after it was alleged that Grant defrauded more than 70 investors and received over $17 million from those investors. Recently, Jeffrey Gainer, Mark George and Thomas Abdallah, all co-conspirators in the scheme, pled guilty to the criminal matter.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently brought actions against Jeffrey Gainer, Jerry Cicolani and Kelly Hood, all brokers who allegedly made recommendations to their clients to invest in KGTA Petroleum between October 2012 and February 2014. KGTA was supposedly an investment in oil and fuel, but the SEC found it to be nothing but a scam. On April 14th, 2015, the U.S. Attorney’s Office brought criminal charges against Cicolani Jr. and Hood related to the scheme, who both pled guilty. The SEC alleged that Cicolani himself recommended KGTA to at least 39 investors, and, because of this, earned over $5 million in commissions for himself. The SEC is now seeking to permanently bar Cicolani and Hood from the securities industry. Both were brokers at PrimeSolutions Securities at the time of the fraud. Both have been terminated from the firm.
Firms such as PrimeSolutions have a duty to reasonably supervise their brokers so they do not make unsuitable recommendations to clients. If the firm does not reasonably supervise its brokers, it may be liable for investment losses suffered by clients. We sue firms such as PrimeSolutions in the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) arbitration process on a contingency fee basis to recover money for clients. The call to us is free with no obligation so please call today.
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