On July 12, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed partially settled charges against Joseph Michael “Mike” Todd, a resident of Panama City, Florida, and his entities Todd Financial Services, LLC (“TFS”) and TFS Insurance Services LLC (“TFS Insurance”), for defrauding at least 20 brokerage customers of at least $3 million.
According to the SEC’s complaint, Todd, while employed as a registered representative and investment adviser representative at a dually-registered broker-dealer and investment adviser, obtained investor funds through deceptive means by instructing his brokerage customers to write checks payable to TFS, TFS Insurance, or Todd by falsely assuring customers that he and his entities would invest the customers’ funds in various securities. As alleged, Todd instead misappropriated investors’ funds and kept the money for his own personal use, spending it on real estate, boating, hunting, casinos, and adult entertainment. The complaint further alleges that, in order to conceal and continue his scheme, Todd presented defrauded customers with forged account statements or portfolio holdings statements that contained falsified entries indicating the customers were invested in the products promised by Todd. Many of the victims of Todd’s scheme were seniors and/or disabled individuals, the complaint alleges. According to the complaint, Todd also made Ponzi-like payments to at least one customer by using other customers’ funds to make regular deposits from a TFS bank account into this customer’s account, which he falsely claimed were interest payments or regular distributions on an investment.
Source: SEC Charges Former Florida Brokerage Representative with Defrauding Senior and Disabled Customers
