Wicked Brokers

FINRA has recently charged registered representative John Edward Mullins with misappropriating almost US$400,000 from a 97-year-old nursing home resident who was a Mullins' client for more than 20 years, as well as from her charitable foundation. The customer has recently passed away. Broker Kathleen Maria Mullins, John Mullins' wife, was also charged with wrongdoing.

In addition, FINRA charged John Mullins with attempting to misappropriate funds from his employer relating to improper expense submissions, accepting an unauthorized US$100,000 loan from the client, and making misstatements on his firm's annual compliance questionnaires and Form U4 (Uniform Application for Security Industry Registration or Transfer) in an apparent effort to conceal his officer and trustee status with the charitable foundation. Kathleen Mullins was charged with accepting a loan from the customer and making misstatements on her Form U4 and annual compliance questionnaires. In addition, both were charged with failure to adhere to high standards of commercial honor and just and equitable principles of trade.

Shortly after the customer's husband died in Dec 1999, the customer established a charitable foundation to receive and administer funds for the benefit of charities devoted to the promotion of musical arts in Philadelphia and the New Jersey Shore. From its creation, the Mullins both served as trustees and officers of the foundation. When the customer initially entered a nursing home in 2000, the Mullins were provided power of attorney over the customer's assets, including the ability to conduct banking transactions and withdraw funds. From about Apr 2006 through Jul 2006 - when the customer became ill and was hospitalized - Mr. Mullins misappropriated almost US$400,000 from his longstanding client. With the elderly customer's health deteriorating, he took advantage of her condition by using her checking account and debit cards to pay for his and his wife's personal expenses, including paying down US$375,000 in their joint mortgage credit-line account.

Beyond paying off the mortgage credit-line, Mr. Mullins began to use the customer's checks and debit cards largely to make purchases for himself and his wife. These purchases and debits included: US$14,120 in ATM cash withdrawals, US$11,264 for meals at restaurants, delicatessens and purchases at confectionary shops, US$4,653 for groceries and US$1,046 for gasoline. John Mullins signed either the customer's name, or his own name, to debit card receipts.

In addition to the customer's personal assets, funds were also misappropriated from the charitable foundation account, set up by the customer at the brokerage firm that employed the Mullins'. For example, John Mullins used the customer's foundation account debit card to purchase approximately US$16,500 in gift certificates. He then redeemed US$5,500 in gift certificates to pay down a retail store account bill, and redeemed US$4,000 in Four Seasons Hotel gift certificates during a vacation to London that he took with his wife.

Comment: 人渣！

P.S. Unfortunately, there are so many wicked brokers / agents like the abovementioned couples in Hong Kong.