Securities Law Blog

A Massachusetts man was arrested March 12, 2008 on charges he represented himself as a stockbroker and stole money from a neighbor who entrusted him to invest more than $187, (Massachusetts v. Gruber). Jeffrey Gruber, of Hull, Mass. was indicted in January and charged with larceny over $250 (five counts) and securities fraud. He pleaded not guilty during his arraignment March 12, 2008 in Brockton Superior Court. The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office said it began investigating Gruber’s activities in July 2006 after it received a copy of a complaint against him by the Secretary of State’s Securities Division. The complaint alleged that from mid-October 2005 through late March 2006, Gruber misrepresented himself to the victim as a certified financial planner and stockbroker. Gruber allegedly advised the victim to invest funds in certain bonds and stocks, a real estate loan, and deposited the money into accounts in the name of Gruber Financial Services Inc. The Complaint further alleged that Gruber did not invest the victim’s funds, but instead spent the funds for his personal use. The victim and her lawyer contacted the Securities Division after Gruber allegedly failed to comply with the victim’s demand for an accounting of her investment and the return of her money.

For more information on this subject contact securities attorneys, Michaels, Ward & Rabinovitz, LLP.