News Releases

Feb 16
2016

Carrollton Investment Adviser Suspended

Ronald Eugene Harrison , an investment adviser representative in Carrollton, has been suspended for 90 days and is required to repay a client $5,000, which represents a portion of the commissions he earned in the sale of an investment to the client. Texas Securities Commissioner John Morgan entered...
Feb 3
2016

Tune Out the Noise and Turn On to the 2016 Investor Guide

The State Securities Board’s newest version of the Texas Investor Guide has landed, bigger and better than ever. The 2016 edition of the Texas Investor Guide: Strategies for Investing Wisely and Avoiding Financial Fraud , has been substantially revised and expanded to help investors – beginning and...
Feb 1
2016

Firm Ordered to Stop Sale of Pension-Linked Investments

Texas Securities Commissioner John Morgan on Feb. 1 entered an Emergency Cease and Desist Order against a firm selling investments that supposedly earn returns from the payout of pension benefits it acquires from federal government employees, members of the military, and certain corporations. The...
Dec 14
2015

Two Investment Advisers Sanctioned for Registration Violations in Sales of Securities

Texas Securities Commissioner John Morgan has entered Disciplinary Orders against two investment advisers for selling securities and collecting commissions without being registered as dealers. Marvin M. Slater of Dallas was suspended for 90 days for the sale of promissory notes that he claimed were...
Dec 10
2015

Investor Alert: Third-Party Asset Recovery Firms

State securities regulators said Thursday that victims of investment fraud should be extremely careful when approached by companies -- known as third-party asset recovery firms -- promising to help them recover their money or bring the perpetrator to justice. A third-party asset recovery company is...
Oct 29
2015

Stock Trader Indicted In $5 Million Investment Scheme

Michael Anthony Collins of Alice was indicted Oct. 26 on charges of securities fraud, theft, and money laundering for allegedly stealing at least $5 million from investors who sunk money into his stock-trading operation.

The indictment alleges that from 2013 through mid-2015, Collins sold “investment plans” in Collins Financial Group of Alice. Investors were told . . . 

Oct 9
2015

Stellar Content, Easier to Navigate – Good Looking, Too

The Texas State Securities Board’s new website is designed to provide the investing public and industry professionals more efficient ways to access the most relevant content. The site offers new ways to stay connected to the State Securities Board, including Twitter ( @TxSSB ), and expands the...
Sep 29
2015

Three-Time Felon Indicted for Short-Term Loan Program

Larry David Eckenrode of McKinney, a three-time felon, was arrested Sept. 29 and faces securities fraud, theft, and money laundering charges related to his sale of investments in a short-term lending program that was allegedly making loans to international fuel businesses.
 

A Collin County grand jury indicted Eckenrode on Aug. 20, 2015. The indictment alleges . . .

 

Sep 22
2015

Investor Alert: Seniors Remain Top Target for Fraud

The North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) reported that senior investors continue to be a primary target for fraudulent investment pitches. In its 2015 Enforcement Report on 2014 Data , released Sept. 22, NASAA, based in Washington, D.C., reported that affinity fraud and...
Sep 9
2015

He Ain't Heavy, He's My Co-Defendant: Brothers Indicted in Forex Fraud

Rodney Lee Wagner and Roger Harvey Wagner, who promised investors huge profits through foreign currency trading, were indicted Sept. 9 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas on one count each of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and three counts each of wire fraud.